Cook County Circuit Judge Nichole C. Patton was the last in a long line of judges appointed and sworn in by justice Charles E. Freeman, who died Monday.Freeman administered Patton her oath of office on June 13, 2018. He retired from the bench two days later on June 15.“It was a badge of honor,” Patton said in an interview Monday night. “All throughout my career, he’s been an icon.”Freeman was the first African American to serve as a justice, and later chief justice, on the Illinois Supreme …