Man charged with threatening Lisa Madigan

A Chicago man has been charged with threatening to kill Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan in a lawsuit over the state’s sex offender registry.

Maurice Pennington Sr. is being held on $25,000 bail. The 58-year-old is charged with one count of threatening a public official.

Natalie Bauer, a spokeswoman for Madigan’s office, says Pennington allegedly made the threat in a lawsuit he filed over the state’s sex offender registry law. His lawsuit challenges the law’s constitutionality.

Pennington was convicted of rape in Illinois in 1982. And 10 years ago, he was convicted of sexually abusing a minor in Texas.

When he moved back to Illinois, he was placed on the registry of sex offenders. He objected and sued.

It wasn’t immediately clear whether Pennington has an attorney.