Chicago is a city that is known for serious racial segregation. There are times when this has also led to racial tension, and this might be one of those times.

A business owner on the north side of the city has been arrested for slapping a 79-year old Cook County Judge and spitting in her face. The man also allegedly called the woman “Rosa Parks” after getting angry over the judge smoking a cigarette near him.

According to the Chicago Tribune, friends and colleagues were stunned to hear what happened to Judge Arnette Hubbard, who was the first female president of The National Bar Association and Cook County Bar Association. She is a respected and celebrated figure in the community and observers are stunned to hear what happened.

“She’s an icon in our community,” said Delores Robinson, past president of the Cook County Bar Association.

Hubbard has held posts as an international observer of elections in Haiti and South Africa. Prosecutors say that David C. Nicosia, a 55-year old man, is being charged with a series of crimes related to the assault. The man allegedly argued with the judge and got near her. He then said, “Rosa Parks move,” and spit in her face.

After that, the judge followed the man and yelled for assistance, and that’s when he allegedly turned and slapped her in the face with an open hand. He is being charged with four counts of aggravated battery and a hate crime. He is being held on $90,000 bail. It appears that he is going to be made to regret this unfortunate decision, since Judge Hubbard is one of the most powerful women in the city.

Hubbard has a long history in Civil Rights law. Her legal career began in 1969 and she has spent several terms on the city’s election board and cable commission. She was appointed to the bench in 1997 and re-elected to a six year term the next year. Her most recent re-election was in 2010.

“People of good common sense and decency, people of good hearts should be outraged by this,” Robinson said. “Not just because of who she is but that this happened to anybody.”