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No One Wants to Hear That, Judge!

By George Khoury, Esq. on October 01, 2018 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

One Cook County judge is learning a hard lesson: People, and especially the people in your courthouse and chambers, don't want to know about the sexual conquests, or failures, of judges, no matter how sad you are that a former classmate you may or may not have been intimate with snubs you. Also, judges shouldn't refer to former classmates (or anyone for that matter) as a "bitch," even if you're talking to someone else. The internet might want to know, but that's a whole different thing.

While the allegations against the Cook County judge are still just that, he has been temporarily reassigned to administrative duty while the matter is being investigated and handled. 

What's Known/Alleged

Thanks to local reporting, the official (redacted) summary of the allegations have been made available. Apparently, Judge Mauricio Araujo was upset about the fact that a former law school classmate from 25 years ago, who was appearing before him upon one of her matters being reassigned to his court, failed to recognize him and congratulate him on becoming a judge. Notably, the two had worked, for several years, in the same building, and had, despite seeing each other around, not once spoken.

After the appearance, in chambers, the judge expressed his dismay (interlaced with inappropriate language) to another attorney (presumably) that his former classmate didn't recognize him, nor congratulate him. When that attorney wittily responded that perhaps it was the judicial robes that made her not recognize him, the judge retorted that there were only 50 people in his class and allegedly also said: "Well, maybe it's because I didn't have sex with her or maybe it's because I did have sex with her." That shocked attorney aptly, though uncomfortably, responded "Well, it's either one or the other."

Notably, the attorney on the receiving end of the above comments wasn't the only one to overhear the judge make remarks about being upset his former classmate didn't say anything. At an earlier time, another court staff member heard the judge say something to a similar effect, though the comments about sex and the vulgar language were only heard later.

Given the recent events surrounding the #MeToo movement and with courts seeking to become more transparent around sexual harassment (not to mention the Kavanaugh confirmation hearings), the fact that all of this is alleged to have happened in the past month makes it all the more surprising.

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