Bill Text: IL SR0834 | 2023-2024 | 103rd General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Mourns the passing of the Honorable Benjamin K. Miller, former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Illinois.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Passed) 2024-03-14 - Resolution Adopted [SR0834 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2023-SR0834-Introduced.html

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SENATE RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened
to learn of the death of the Honorable Benjamin K. Miller,
former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Illinois, who
passed away on February 25, 2024; and
WHEREAS, Judge Miller was born to Clifford C. and Mary M.
Miller in Springfield on November 5, 1936; he graduated from
Springfield High School in 1954 and Southern Illinois
University Carbondale in 1958; he received his law degree from
Vanderbilt University Law School in 1961; he graduated from
the U.S. Army Intelligence School in Maryland in 1962; and
WHEREAS, Upon completion of law school, Judge Miller
returned to Springfield, where he worked in private practice
from 1961 to 1976; during this time, he served in both the U.S.
Army Reserve and U.S. Navy Reserve; he was appointed to the
Circuit Court for the 7th Judicial Circuit by the Supreme
Court of Illinois in 1976, and he was elected to that position
in 1978; he then served as Presiding Judge in the Criminal
Felony Division of the Circuit Court in Sangamon County from
1976 to 1980; he was elected Chief Judge of the 7th Judicial
Circuit, serving in that capacity until he was elected to the
4th District Appellate Court in 1982; and

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WHEREAS, Judge Miller was elected to a ten-year term on
the Supreme Court of Illinois in 1984, representing the 4th
Judicial District, which covers much of central Illinois; he
was elected Chief Justice in 1991, becoming the first and only
Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Illinois to be from
Sangamon County; he served in that role until January 1, 1994;
that same year, he was reelected to the Supreme Court of
Illinois; and
WHEREAS, During his tenure as Chief Justice of the Supreme
Court of Illinois, Judge Miller was known for his
intelligence, ethics, and forward-thinking approach and for
always championing ways to improve the court system; his
leadership led to profound changes in the judicial system,
including expanding judicial performance evaluations
statewide, adding non-attorneys to disciplinary hearing boards
that ruled on lawyer misconduct, and clarifying the
restrictions on political activity by judges and judicial
candidates by amending the Code of Judicial Conduct; he also
established the Special Commission on the Administration of
Justice and the Illinois Family Violence Coordinating Council;
and
WHEREAS, Judge Miller had a lifelong interest in bioethics
and helped develop the medical-legal curriculum at Southern
Illinois University School of Medicine, where he served as an

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adjunct professor in the Department of Medical Humanities for
several years; after retirement, he also served in an of
counsel capacity at the law firm Jenner & Block in Chicago for
many years; and
WHEREAS, Judge Miller was active in many community
organizations, including serving as president of the Greater
Springfield Chamber of Commerce and the Springfield Mental
Health Association, a board member of Sparc and the
Springfield-Sangamon County Youth Services Bureau, and a
member of the Illinois State Bar Association, the Sangamon
County Bar Association, and the Central Illinois Women's Bar
Association, where he became the association's first male
member; he also helped establish a center for battered women
in Springfield and provided legal advice to victims of
domestic abuse; from 1988 to 1991, he chaired the Illinois
Courts Commission, the constitutional body authorized to
discipline or suspend members of the judiciary; and
WHEREAS, Judge Miller received a number of accolades,
including being awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws from the
John Marshall Law School in 1991 and named to the Order of
Lincoln, the State's highest civilian honor, in 2019; he was
the namesake of the Justice Benjamin K. Miller Recognition
Award, which was established to honor outstanding members of
the community and the judiciary for their work in preventing

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family violence; and
WHEREAS, Judge Miller was a world-class sailor, and he
enjoyed sailing his 37-foot sailboat, Adventure, throughout
the Caribbean and South America; and
WHEREAS, Judge Miller's impact on the law is both
significant and substantial; he wrote over 487 opinions,
participated in more than 2,000 cases, and evaluated over
20,000 requests for review; he will be remembered for serving
as a leader in court reform and ethics and as a tireless
advocate for victims of domestic abuse; and
WHEREAS, Judge Miller was preceded in death by his
parents, Clifford C. and Mary M. Miller; and
WHEREAS, Judge Miller is survived by his sister, Carol
Costello; his nephews, John Costello and David (Julie)
Costello; his niece, Katherine (Mark) Whitlock, and her sons,
Ben and Jack Whitlock; Jennifer A. Johnson; and many friends;
therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED THIRD GENERAL
ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of
the Honorable Benjamin K. Miller, former Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court of Illinois, and extend our sincere condolences

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to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be
it further