In re Marriage of Bush

2020 IL App (1st) 201035-U
CourtAppellate Court of Illinois
DecidedOctober 26, 2020
Docket1-20-1035
StatusUnpublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 2020 IL App (1st) 201035-U (In re Marriage of Bush) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Appellate Court of Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
In re Marriage of Bush, 2020 IL App (1st) 201035-U (Ill. Ct. App. 2020).

Opinion

2020 IL App (1st) 201035-U

FIFTH DIVISION October 26, 2020

No. 1-20-1035

NOTICE: This order was filed under Supreme Court Rule 23 and may not be cited as precedent by any party except in the limited circumstances allowed under Rule 23(e)(1).

IN THE APPELLATE COURT OF ILLINOIS FIRST JUDICIAL DISTRICT

In re MARRIAGE OF ) Appeal from the Circuit Court of ERIKA BUSH, ) Cook County ) Petitioner-Appellee, ) ) No. 2017 D 230075 and ) ) EDWIN F. BUSH, ) ) Honorable John T. Carr, Respondent-Appellant. ) Judge, presiding.

PRESIDING JUSTICE DELORT delivered the judgment of the court. Justices Cunningham and Rochford concurred in the judgment.

ORDER

¶1 Held: The circuit court did not err by: (1) denying a “motion for recusal”, (2) denying a motion to strike which sought to invalidate the order of protection statute as unconstitutional, or (3) in entering an emergency order of protection against respondent. We dismiss the remainder of the appeal for lack of an appropriate supporting record.

¶2 In February 2017, Erika Bush filed a petition for dissolution of her marriage to Edwin

Bush. Since then, the case has been on the docket of three circuit court judges, the parties’ two

children have had two court-appointed representatives, the court has ordered the parties to see 1-19-1467

several therapists, and Edwin has filed multiple appeals to this court. As described in our ruling

on the last appeal, the case eventually went to trial and, before any evidence could be presented,

Edwin stormed out and did not return. In re Marriage of Bush, 2019 IL App (1st) 191467-U, ¶ 24.

The trial proceeded in his absence and the court entered an order dissolving the marriage and

granting Erika “all sole decision-making authority for the minor children” and “suspending”

Edwin’s parenting time. Id. ¶ 31. We held that the circuit court had impermissibly reserved the

issue of Edwin’s parenting time, and reaffirmed that the circuit court may not restrict Edwin’s

parenting time without a written finding that his “exercise of parenting time would seriously

endanger the [children’s] physical, mental, moral, or emotional health.” Id. ¶¶ 80-83 (quoting In

re Custody of G.L., 2017 IL App (1st) 163171, ¶ 33). We used our authority under Supreme Court

Rule 366(a)(5) (eff. Feb. 1, 1994) to leave subsection 9(C) of the judgment in place as a temporary

order and remanded the case for further proceedings on the issue of Edwin’s parenting time. Id.

¶ 85.

¶3 Although the parenting time issue was still unresolved, Erika filed a petition for an

emergency order of protection against Edwin and on behalf of herself and the children. Erika

alleged that Edwin had caused a disturbance at the children’s school and had come to Erika’s home

and left disparaging written signs. The petition sought nearly every available relief, including that

Edwin’s parenting time be restricted to supervised visitation and that Edwin be enjoined from

visiting the children’s school.

¶4 In response to the petition, Edwin filed a barrage of pleadings which he piggy-backed onto

the hearing date set on Erika’s petition around midnight, just hours before the petition was to be

heard. These included, among other things, a “motion to recuse” Judge Carr and two motions

seeking temporary restraining orders, declaratory orders, and other relief. One motion argued that

2 1-19-1467

that portions of the Illinois Domestic Violence Act of 1986 (Domestic Violence Act) (750 ILCS

60/101, et seq. (West 2018)) were unconstitutional because they permitted the court to restrict

parenting time based on a lower standard than that required by the Illinois Marriage and

Dissolution of Marriage Act (IMDMA) (750 ILCS 5/101, et seq.) (West 2018)). The other motion

challenged the constitutionality of a circuit court administrative order prohibiting the recording of

remote proceedings.

¶5 During the COVID-19 pandemic, the circuit court held a hearing on the petition via video

conferencing software. A transcript of the hearing is in the record before us. At the hearing, Edwin

presented and argued his “motion for recusal”, contending that Judge Carr had made several

rulings over the past two years that were not only wrong, but required Judge Carr to recuse himself.

The court summarily denied the motion and proceeded with the hearing on the order of protection.

Edwin’s other motions were not discussed at any length. Edwin asserted that he had a pending

motion to strike the petition, which the court then denied. Edwin later asserted that he had a

pending motion directed against the administrative order against recording, but the court simply

directed Edwin to proceed with his defense to Erika’s order of protection petition.

¶6 Steve Wasko, the children’s guardian ad litem (GAL), testified that on September 23, 2020,

he had a discussion with the principal of the children’s school regarding a recent incident. Edwin

had evidently visited the campus, intending to see his son. Wasko testified that he had reviewed

police reports and correspondence stemming from the incident but had not interviewed the parties

or the children. He also testified that he had been notified of complaints by Erika that Edwin had

come to her building in mid-August, but he did not investigate those claims because they did not

relate to conduct witnessed by the children.

3 1-19-1467

¶7 Wasko testified that Edwin had not had parenting time in nearly two years and opined that

such a prolonged separation was “absolutely not” in the best interests of the children. He testified

that the lack of a parenting schedule is “a great disservice to” the children, but he opined that until

there was a parenting schedule in place, it was in the best interest of the children that Edwin stay

away from the school.

¶8 Erika then testified that she picked up her children from school earlier than usual on

September 23, 2020 because the principal had called to tell her that Edwin had been on the campus.

She testified, over Edwin’s hearsay objection, that their son told her that he saw Edwin at the

school and that he told his teacher that he was afraid of Edwin. She testified that the children’s

enrollment in the school has been jeopardized by Edwin’s behavior.

¶9 Erika also testified that, on August 15, she received a call from the callbox in the lobby of

her building. On the other end of the line was Edwin, shouting that he wanted to see his children.

She promptly hung up the phone. She testified that Edwin called “at least three more times” but

she did not answer because she was frightened for her safety and that of the children. On cross-

examination, she admitted that her petition only alleged that Edwin called twice.

¶ 10 Erika testified that a few days later, she found a large sign lying in her assigned parking

spot. The sign accused Erika of child abuse, accused the circuit court and the local police of

condoning the abuse, and concluded with a message to the children: “Daddy loves you.” Erika

testified that her assigned parking spot is in a secure parking garage under her building. She

testified that her son read the sign and was upset. She later found a similar sign in front of the

lobby of her building. She testified that she called the Park Ridge Police Department; officers came

to her home and made a report. Neither of the signs were entered into evidence. When Erika held

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Related

In re Marriage of Bush
2021 IL App (1st) 210047-U (Appellate Court of Illinois, 2021)

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2020 IL App (1st) 201035-U, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/in-re-marriage-of-bush-illappct-2020.