Report: Nominee for Chicago’s top federal prosecutor to be named district judge after Senate stall

WASHINGTON — The woman nominated for Chicago’s top federal prosecutor position is being named a federal judge after she was not confirmed in the Senate, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

April Perry was nominated by the Biden administration last summer following John Lausch’s departure as U.S. Attorney for the Northern District in March 2023. Lausch was nominated by former President Trump in 20217.

The Sun-Times reports that Perry will be officially nominated to a lifetime position as a U.S. District Court judge for the Northern District of Illinois.

Once President Biden took office, Illinois Senators Tammy Duckworth and Dick Durbin released a joint statement urging Biden not to effectively force his resignation like several other Trump-appointed U.S. attorneys.

Lausch stayed on and helped announce one of the biggest cases of his tenure, the indictment of Mike Madigan.

Morris “Sonny” Pasqual has led the office in an interim capacity since Lausch left.

The stall in the U.S. Senate was not due to her qualifications, but because Ohio GOP Senator J.D. Vance said he was blocking her confirmation to protest the criminal prosecution of Donald Trump.

The Sun-Times reports that the position will likely be filled after the 2024 presidential election.

Perry would have been the district’s first woman in the position.

Biden nominates April Perry for Chicago’s top federal prosecutor

At the time of her nomination, Perry was senior counsel with global investigations and fraud and abuse prevention at GE HealthCare.

Prior to serving as general counsel for Ubiety Technologies from 2019 to 2022, Perry was the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office’s first ever Chief Ethics Officer under Kim Foxx.

In April 2019 during the Jussie Smollett scandal, Perry left the office for her role at Ubiety Technologies.

Perry received her J.D., magna cum laude, in 2003 and her B.S., magna cum laude, in 2000, both from Northwestern University.

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