Judge, former prosecutor Matthew Maurer passes away

Former United States Attorney for the Central District of Illinois John Milhiser said he would rather have Matthew Maurer as co-counsel prosecuting a case than have him as the defense attorney on the other side of the courtroom.

Milhiser, the former Sangamon County State's Attorney who has returned to the office on a part-time basis, experienced both.

Maurer, a judge on the Seventh Judicial Circuit for the past 10 years, passed away at his Springfield home on Sunday.

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He was 62.

Milhiser remembered the Springfield native for his sharp legal acumen and as a person who didn't complain despite his physical limitations.

Maurer began his legal career as a prosecutor in the state's attorney's office and then went into private practice and served as part time felony public defender.

"I had cases against him when I was in the state's attorney's office and he was a public defender," recalled Milhiser, reached Wednesday. "I always found him to be a very sharp lawyer, fair and would represent his clients and was who I wanted as first assistant (state's attorney) for several reasons.

"One, is because it's an important job to make sure these criminal cases are handled appropriately, and that we convict those who were responsible for these crimes and Matt was an excellent trial attorney. He was just a really, really good person, so in the day-to-day dealings with the office or the dealings with the public, he was an asset to me and an asset to Sangamon County."

As a judge, Milhiser added, "there was no assignment he wouldn't do. There was no case too complicated. He wouldn't shy away from the difficult cases."

While he was an outstanding jurist and lawyer, "he was an even better person," Milhiser said.

A 1980 graduate of Griffin High School, Maurer graduated in 1987 from the University of Illinois College of Law.

A 2013 article in The State Journal-Register detailed a diving accident Maurer had at age 13, leaving him unable to walk. He used a motorized wheelchair to get around.

“I’ve been involved in numerous felony trials and murder trials, and I really don’t think that my disability’s ever been a hindrance in any way," Maurer told Bernie Schoenburg in 2013, after his appointment to the bench.

"I still use Matt, and I have for years, as an example when I see folks complaining," Milhiser said. "I think about Matt and all he did. He was somebody I looked up to."

Maurer is survived by his wife, Kristina "Kris" McCarthy, a son and a daughter.

Maurer's funeral service is at 10 a.m. Friday at Koke Mill Christian Church, 475 S. Koke Mill Rd.

Contact Steven Spearie: 217-622-1788, [email protected], twitter.com/@StevenSpearie.

This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: Seventh Judicial Circuit Judge Matthew Maurer passes away