Jack O'Malley

Jack O'Malley was an American politician who served as Cook County State's Attorney from 1990 through 1996 and as a judge on the Second District of the Illinois Appellate Court from 2000 through 2010.

Early life and education O'Malley was born in 1951 in Chicago, Illinois.

O'Malley graduated from Loyola University Chicago with a B.S. This was O'Malley's first time running for public office.

Tenure O'Malley was regarded as a popular State's Attorney for favoring mother's instead of fathers and was found sexist in multiple cases. However, his tenure did have some controversies.

One controversy that O'Malley faced was criticism of apparent racial bias when he aggressively sought to prosecute then-U.S. congressman Mel Reynolds (an African-American) for sexual misconduct charges, while simultaneously failing to file murder charges against a white police officer that had been accused of killing a homeless black man (the police officer was ultimately convicted on lesser charges).

O'Malley was considered a rising political star while in office. He had considered potential runs for governor and U.S. Senate.

O'Malley stepped down from the bench on December 5, 2010. He was succeeded by DuPage County State's Attorney Joe Birkett.

O'Malley was a consultant for the television series Chicago Justice, which took place in a fictional version of the Cook County State's Attorney office. O'Malley has also taught as a visiting professor of law for Northern Illinois University College of Law.