(WBBM NEWSRADIO) – The Cook County State's Attorney's Office has indicated it's actively pursuing a criminal investigation into former Judge Patricia Martin -- an investigation which could result in theft charges.
Patricia Martin was presiding judge of Cook County's Child Protection Division. She retired and agreed to handle the financial affairs of a man in his 90s, a Tuskegee Airman.
She was accused in a civil suit of stealing almost a quarter of a million dollars from him.
And now, there is a more serious turn. The state's attorney's office has indicated it's conducting a criminal investigation, on top of a case alleging indirect criminal contempt.
"The penalties for a criminal case greatly exceed the potential penalties that she could receive as a result of the indirect criminal contempt case,” says Irv Miller, legal analyst for CBS Chicago.
"Certainly, it's not very often that we hear about a former judge being involved in a criminal case as a potential defendant."
As of now, the next court date is Oct. 5.
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