Bipolar Judge Barred from Entering Courthouse Without Escort Re-elected in Cook County, Ill.

Faces misdemeanor battery charges and has been suspended from the bench

A Cook County judge who was re-elected Tuesday despite being suspended from the bench appeared in court a few hours later as a defendant in a battery case that her attorney said should be tossed because his client was "legally insane" at the time.

Judge Cynthia Brim, 54, whose 18-year tenure has been marked by controversy, told reporters as she left a criminal courtroom Wednesday at 26th and California that she was pleased by the election results, which she watched at home Tuesday night.

"I'm just happy the people voted me back in," said Brim, who was suspended from her $182,000-a-year job in March after a wild week in which she was removed from her Markham courtroom after launching into a rambling 45-minute tirade and then, a day later, was charged with shoving a deputy at the Daley Center.

Hat tip to Reason commenter Certified Public Asskicker.*

* (Reason has not independently verified certification)