Brian Rahilly

Brian Rahilly, a judge on Michigan's 11th Circuit Court, was disqualified indefinitely from presiding over cases in Mackinac County involving that county's prosecutor after years of private text messages between Rahilly and another judge came to light during an unrelated criminal investigation into a Mackinac County probate judge. The messages, according to prosecutors, showed a pattern of bias against attorneys and attempts to pressure prosecutors toward particular decisions in criminal cases; in them, Rahilly and the other judge referred to attorneys, prosecutors, and law enforcement using terms like "moron," "useless," and worse. Text messages and images also appeared to show Rahilly intentionally and improperly forcing settlements in Alger County criminal cases.

Mackinac County Prosecutor J. Stewart Spencer's motion to disqualify Rahilly succeeded; a parallel motion in Alger County was denied by a different judge. Rahilly has taken a voluntary leave of absence amid the controversy.