Personal custody cases rarely make it into the public eye for consumption, unless you are of course a celebrity, celebrity attorney, or of course a local high-ranking political official… In the Chicago Tribune on June 30, 2009 a staff reporter opened up their article “A politically connected Cook County state’s attorney’s office employee threatened to use her position to expose her ex-boyfriend as a federal informant against the Outfit, voice mail messages played in court suggest.“ (Chicago Tribune; County Employee in Ugly Custody Battle; June, 20, 2009) Well, just the very nature of this appearing in the newspaper seemed to make that threat a significant reality.
This particular headline is interesting because the father brought the issue of threatening voice mails and the resulting outcome is that the mother obtained a restraining order against him.
The threats that Patti Simone made against the father of their two children have prosecutors launching an investigation. According to the Chicago Tribune article there were two cell phone messages left by Patti Simone, who happens to be the Narcotics Unit Administrator. This author may try and obtain a copy of the tapes through the Child Custody Case in the near future if they are not released through other public channels.
In the first voice mail message Ms. Simone states “Everyone will know that you are working with the government,” she warns. “Do you understand?”
In the second voice mail message Ms. Simone pretty much states that there could be a conspiracy through the use of her office by threatening “There are several investigators who will be more than happy to let certain people know you are cooperating with the Feds — do you understand?”
There are significant threats possibly going in both directions in this case, but where a government official is allowed to abuse such authority and power it warrants a greater scrutiny than just some random member of the public making threats against another.
Daly said the state’s attorney could still bring “disciplinary or criminal” charges against Simone over the voice mail messages.
Simone works in Alvarez’s narcotics unit. She has continued to work at the Criminal Court building since the tapes surfaced. She is the daughter of Palos Township Democratic Committeeman Sam Simone.
Although a protection order was granted to Simone against Rosales, and the attorney for Simone is stating that she is right because one was issued, it is a far cry from seeing all the facts. The Chicago Tribune didn’t cover the fact that restraining orders are issued with little to no evidence based on low evidentiary standards and that each time an order of protection is handed down that the states receive a bonus stipend in civil or criminal proceedings.
It will be interesting to see how more of these “high-profile” personal custody cases play on public perception of divorce and separation cases.
