Lawyer for indicted judge claims feds targeted her because of her job

The lawyer for indicted Cook County Judge Jessica Arong O'Brien accused federal prosecutors Thursday of unfairly targeting his client because of her job.

Ricardo Meza made the claim in court while arguing a two-count mortgage fraud indictment against O'Brien and Maria Bartko should be dismissed, largely on technical grounds. Meza suggested prosecutors should have indicted others who had a role in the alleged scheme.

"Why indict any of those people when you've got a Cook County judge?" Meza said.

But U.S. District Judge Thomas M. Durkin told him, "that goes nowhere, the issue of whether the right people got indicted." He and Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Madden also noted that Meza had yet to file a motion formally accusing the U.S. Attorney's Office of vindictive prosecution.

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