Thomas Maag
Madison County Associate Judge Stephen Stobbs granted Edwardsville attorney Thomas Maag's motion to continue his jury trial in which Maag is charged with soliciting a sexual act, a class B misdemeanor.
Stobbs also granted most of Maag's previously filed motions in limine and set a hearing date for late March to hear Maag's newly filed motion to suppress evidence.
The charges against Maag state, "Defendant contacted Detective Lori Perkins, a person who is not his spouse, and offered her $150 U.S. Currency to perform an act of sexual penetration as defined in 720 ILCS 5/12-12 (f), in violation of 720 ILCS 5/11-14.1 (a), and against the peace and dignity of the said People of the State of Illinois."
In addition to Maag, five other individuals were arrested by the Granite City Police Department during an undercover prostitution sting.
Maag is currently employed at Wendler Law Firm in Edwardsville. He formerly worked for the Lakin Law Firm in Wood River, but left the firm in early 2006.
Stobbs granted all but one of Maag's motions in limine, so prosecutors will not be able to tell the jury that Maag is a "prominent Madison County plaintiff's attorney" nor can they make reference to Maag's father's (Gordon Maag) former position as an appellate judge, or his father's attempt to become a supreme court judge.
He also wanted any evidence that he remained silent and asked for an attorney to be banned arguing it is a well established principal of law that post-arrest silence may not be used at trial, however Stobbs denied that motion and said he would consider arguing the motion again at trial.
In his motion to suppress, one of Maag's lawyers, Justin Kuehn of Belleville, argues that evidence that police inventoried from Maag should be suppressed because Maag was arrested before officers developed the necessary probable cause for doing so.
Kuehn also argues that Maag was arrested before police acquired an arrest warrant.
Kuehn argues that both the Illinois and United States Constitution requires that a person has the right to be free from unreasonable search and seizures.
"The items of evidence seized were the direct and proximate result of an illegal arrest, and being derivative of that illegality, constitute fruit of the poisonous tree," Kuehn wrote.
Maag's other lawyer, Clyde Kuehn, also filed a motion for additional discovery asking the State to turn over the police reports of the other individuals arrested in the same sting as Maag.
Kuehn, a former St. Clair County Circuit Judge and Fifth District Appellate Judge, worked with Gordon Maag in Mt. Vernon.
In addition, Clyde Kuehn also filed a motion for even more discovery arguing the defense must be put on notice of the type of post arrest silence the state claims is admissible.
Clyde Kuehn wants Stobbs to order the State to proffer the type of evidence it intends to introduce concerning Maag's assertion of a constitutional right.
He argues that if the matter is not raised again until trial that Maag will likely be prejudiced because "one cannot un-ring a bell."
Madison County Assistant State's Attorney Thomas Gibbons is prosecuting Maag.