Illinois judge is yanked from the bench after reversing a man's rape conviction for the brutal assault of a 16-year-old girl during a graduation party

An Illinois judge who reversed a teen's intersexual battle condemnation for raping a sleeping 16-year-old has been removed from nan bench.

The Illinois Courts Commission removed Adams County Judge Robert Adrian from nan chair Friday aft it held a three-day proceeding successful Chicago following a title against him.

Adrian had recovered then-18-year-old Drew Clinton of Taylor, Michigan, blameworthy of sexually assaulting 16-year-old Cameron Vaughan during a May 2021 graduation statement successful October 2021.

But astatine nan sentencing hearing, months aft his conviction, Adrian said nan boy had served 'plenty' of clip down bars - 148 days - and that while he couldn't condemnation him to clip served, he could overturn nan verdict and group him free.  

The determination from nan courts committee said Adrian 'engaged successful aggregate instances of misconduct' and 'abused his position of powerfulness to indulge his ain consciousness of justness while circumventing nan law.'

The authorities Judicial Inquiry Board revenge a title against Adrian aft nan judge threw retired Clinton's condemnation successful January 2022.

At nan time, nan judge said: 'He has nary anterior record, nary whatsoever. By law, nan tribunal is expected to condemnation this young man to nan Department of Corrections... This tribunal will not do that. That is not just. There is nary measurement for what happened successful this lawsuit that this teen should spell to nan Department of Corrections. I will not do that.'

According to nan state's law, Clinton should person served a minimum of 4 years successful nan Illinois Department of Corrections.

The committee could person issued a reprimand, censure aliases suspension without pay, but its determination said it had 'ample grounds' for instantly removing Adrian from nan chair successful occidental Illinois' Adams County.

The title said Adrian had acknowledged he was expected to enforce nan mandatory four-year condemnation against Clinton, but that he would not nonstop him to prison.

Adrian was besides accused of lying nether oath astir his reasons for reversing nan condemnation and of kicking retired a charismatic from nan courtroom aft they liked a societal media station captious of nan judge.

The judge told nan prosecutor: ['I don't get connected societal media, but my woman does, and she saw nan thumbs-up you gave to group attacking maine ... I can't beryllium adjacent pinch you. Get out.'

Cameron, now 18 years old, waived her correct to anonymity and said she passed retired drunk successful nan basement and woke up to find Clinton sexually assaulting her while holding a pillow complete her face.

Clinton claimed they had consensual activity and that she was not arsenic drunk arsenic she claims she was.

According to tribunal transcripts, aft he reversed Clinton's conviction, Adrian blamed parents and adults for 'having parties for teenagers, and they let coeds and female group to aquatics successful their underwear successful their swimming pool. And, no, underwear is not nan aforesaid arsenic swimming suits.'

He added: 'It's conscionable — they let 16-year-olds to bring liquor to a party. They supply liquor to underage people, and you wonderment really these things happen. Well, that's really these things happen. The tribunal is wholly disgusted pinch that full thing.'

Vaughan told nan Chicago Tribune pursuing Friday's determination that she was 'very happy that nan committee could spot each nan incorrect and each nan lies that he told nan full time. I'm truthful unbelievably happy correct now. He can´t wounded anybody else. He can't ruin anyone else's life.'

Adrian said that nan determination to region him is 'totally a miscarriage of justice. I did what was right. I've ever told nan truth astir it.'

Adams County tribunal records show that Clinton's blameworthy verdict was overturned because prosecutors had grounded to meet nan load of impervious to beryllium Clinton guilty.

But successful Friday's decision, nan committee wrote that it recovered Adrian's declare that 'he reversed his blameworthy uncovering based connected his reconsideration of nan grounds and his conclusion that nan State had grounded to beryllium its lawsuit to beryllium a perfunctory - respondent's effort to warrant nan reversal station hoc.'

Clinton cannot beryllium tried again for nan aforesaid crime nether nan Fifth Amendment. A mobility to expunge Clinton's grounds was denied successful February 2023.