Domestic violence judge who released man suspected of killing wife is currently not hearing cases

A judge who declined to jail a man on domestic violence charges weeks before he allegedly killed his wife is no longer hearing cases because of “anonymous threats,” Cook County’s top judge announced Tuesday.

Judge Thomas Nowinski was not on the bench Monday or Tuesday at the domestic violence courthouse at 555 W. Harrison St., with Chief Judge Timothy Evans announcing that Nowinski was not hearing cases, and that his office is investigating "whether any employee failed to follow policies and procedures in this case.”

Evans’ announcement comes a week after Lacramioara Beldie was killed, allegedly by her husband, Constantin Beldie, the day after he was arraigned on suspicion of choking and attempting to kidnap her. The next day, Nov. 19, authorities say Constantin Beldie fatally stabbed his wife to death. Constantin Beldie was later found dead in a car parked nearby.

In October, Nowinski had rejected prosecutors' request to jail Constantin Beldie at a detention hearing.

In the spring of 2024, Nowinski, who was elected to the bench two years ago, also denied a protective order against Crosetti Brand — a convicted felon with a history of domestic violence, who later allegedly stabbed the woman who sought the protection and killed her 11-year-old son, Jayden Perkins. Advocacy groups last week issued a call for Nowinski to be removed from hearing domestic violence cases, with state Comptroller Susana Mendoza calling on Nowinski to resign.

Lacramioara Beldie’s death revealed “gaps in policies and procedures,” Evans said in his press release, which opened with the statement “Lacramioara Beldie’s tragic death is one that should not have occurred.”

At his detention hearing, prosecutors argued that Constantin Beldie was a flight risk and a threat to public safety, but Nowinski found they did not meet their burden of proof, according to a transcript of the hearing. Beldie was placed on GPS monitoring with some other restrictions.

A source close to Nowinski blamed the prosecution for failing to disclose important background information during the detention hearing — including the prior order of protection and history of domestic violence.

Records presented in court that day indicated that Beldie was never the subject of a prior protective order and that he had been deemed “Medium-Low Risk” for committing future acts of domestic violence.

In his statement, Evans seemed to support the claim that Nowinski made his decision based on “incomplete information.”

“Early findings in our preliminary examination of this case indicate the court was provided incomplete information about the case, and made the best decisions it could with the information provided to the court at that time,” Evans wrote.

Evans said there would be additional training for domestic violence court judges, including judges assigned to the division on weekends, and measures would be taken to “strengthen electronic monitoring processes and protocols.”

He also said he would meet with incoming Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke, who will be sworn in next week, to talk about enhancing coordination between the courts and prosecutors.