Chicago: Cook County public defenders file lawsuit over inmates masturbating in their presence

Of course these public defenders can always refuse to work with jailbirds who can't keep it in their pants.

Regardless, there is a moral sickness in Chicago.

From the Chicago Sun-Times:

A half-dozen employees of the Cook County Public Defender’s office have filed a sexual harassment lawsuit, claiming county officials have done nothing to protect them from inmates who masturbate in front of them during visits to the jail and courtroom holding cells.

The federal lawsuit describes almost daily encounters in which detainees masturbate and leer at the lawyers during meetings with clients – a phenomenon the complainants say has been on the rise at the jail dating back to 2015.

The lawsuit seeks class action status on behalf of women working for the office, including more than 200 of 400 staff attorneys.

Public defenders' "work is grueling and their caseloads are heavy, but they are almost uniformly driven by their love of the important work they do," the lawsuit reads.

Love for their work? Maybe. Love for their clients? Unlikely.

What would Clarence Earl Gideon have to say?

Related post:

Public defenders at Chicago's Cook County Jail pushed to breaking point over inmates masturbating in front of them