Oswego Village Board members Tuesday will vote on a resolution to designate Garfield Street in the village in honor of retired Illinois Supreme Court Justice Rita Garman.
More Top Picks Best Red Light Bulbs For Sleep
The Oswego Historic Preservation Commission submitted an application for an honorary street designation in the judge’s honor to recognize her accomplishments.
Garman was born in Aurora and grew up in Oswego. She lived on Garfield Street, village officials said in a report to trustees.
She graduated from Oswego High School and was the valedictorian of her class in 1961. She then studied economics at the University of Illinois and law at University of Iowa College of Law.
She began her career at the Vermillion County Legal Aid Society and advanced at a time when women were not prominent in the law profession, village officials said.
“Despite hostility toward women in the profession, Justice Garman was appointed as an associate judge – and the first female judge – in the Fifth Judicial Circuit,” village officials said in the report. “After 12 years in 1986, she was elected circuit judge and was the first woman to hold the position. In 1995 she was appointed, and eventually elected, to the Fourth District Appellate Court and was once again the first female justice. In 2001, Justice Garman was appointed to the Illinois Supreme Court. She served on the court from 2001 to 2022, serving as chief justice from 2013 to 2016.”
Village staff has recommended the honorary street sign be placed at the corner of Garfield and Ashland streets, in close proximity to her childhood home.
According to the application for the honorary street name, Garman expressed interest in a career in law. However, her undergraduate advisor “steered her away” from enrolling in a dual degree program in law and commerce, “suggesting that as a young women, she might not be admitted to the law school portion of the program.”
Garman went on to major in economics at the University of Illinois and graduated in 1965 with highest honors, officials said.
Garman then became one of eight women in her class at University of Iowa College of Law.
“She recalls some professors being overtly hostile to women law students, remarking that they were taking up spaces that belonged to men who would need to support their families, or accusing the women of attending law school only to meet a future husband,” according to the application.
After “struggling to find a law position due to her gender,” Garman accepted a position with the Vermillion County Legal Aid Society, the application states. She was encouraged by several judges and colleagues to apply for an open associate judge position.
“When she was appointed associate judge, she became the first female judge in the Fifth Judicial Circuit – the first time, but not the last, that she would break new ground,” according to the application.
During her time at the Illinois Supreme Court, she proposed the establishment of a special committee on child custody issues to place priority on cases involving the custody, adoption, abuse and neglect of children, according to the application.
Garman retired from the Illinois Supreme Court in 2022.
Oswego in October approved a new policy for honorary street names in the village. The honorary street name signs will not change the official street names or addresses, village officials said.
Linda Girardi is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.