Emily Hoerner, Senior Reporter at Injustice Watch

Emily Hoerner

Emily Hoerner was a reporter for Injustice Watch from 2016 to 2021, where she covered policing, judges, and other aspects of the criminal justice system. She won numerous awards for her work at Injustice Watch, including an Ancil Payne Award for Ethics in Journalism and a National Headline Club award, and was a finalist for the Online News Association's Knight Award for Public Service.

Unequal Treatment

Lawsuit: Cash bail in Cook County violates rights of poor accused of crimes

A newly filed lawsuit contends that thousands of poor people, especially African Americans, are being illegally locked up before trial in Cook County because they are too poor to be able to post bond.

by Emily Hoerner and Jeanne Kuang October 16, 2016December 5, 2023

2016 Retention

Negative ratings unlikely to keep seven judges from Cook County bench

If history is a guide, Cook County voters will approve in November seven judges taking the bench even though one leading bar association group has concluded they do not belong there.

by Emily Hoerner October 6, 2016December 5, 2023

Bad Judgment

Sparse money leaves discipline unlikely for wayward Illinois judges

Members of the Illinois Courts Commission, one of two bodies created by the Illinois Constitution to police judicial conduct, have nothing to do. After the commission issued a censure last month to Cook County Circuit Judge Beatriz Santiago, that left it with no outstanding complaints against any of the roughly 950 trial and appellate court judges across Illinois.

by Emily Hoerner September 7, 2016February 1, 2024

Judicial Conduct

Cook County judge receives rare censure over false mortgage statement

Circuit Court Judge Beatriz Santiago was formally censured by the Illinois courts on Thursday, the first Cook County judge to be formally disciplined in more than two years.

by Emily Hoerner August 18, 2016December 5, 2023

Cook County Jail

Judge nudges Cook County to settle complaint of freezing jail cells

The judge, U.S. District Court Chief Judge Ruben Castillo, directed the county officials to “reevaluate their settlement positions” before the next hearing in a case next month filed by two inmates who contend that officials failed to protect them from extreme cold temperatures in their jail cells in the early months of 2014.

by Emily Hoerner July 13, 2016December 5, 2023

Unequal Treatment

Cops and Stops

First in a series of reports examining the unequal treatment afforded people of color at critical points in the criminal justice system.

by Emily Hoerner and Sam Hart July 6, 2016January 30, 2024

Unequal Treatment

Cook County Jail

The Big Chill: Inmates contend Cook County cheating on ensuring warm jail cells

Cook County officials have been reporting cozy temperatures from inside jail cells. But lawsuit shows: They weren’t taking those temperatures inside the cells.

by Emily Hoerner April 27, 2016February 1, 2024

Emily Hoerner

Lawsuit: Cash bail in Cook County violates rights of poor accused of crimes

Negative ratings unlikely to keep seven judges from Cook County bench

Sparse money leaves discipline unlikely for wayward Illinois judges

Cook County judge receives rare censure over false mortgage statement

Judge nudges Cook County to settle complaint of freezing jail cells

Cops and Stops

Cops and Stops

Taxpayer surprise: Police misconduct suits cost more than advertised

Inmate’s sentence stands after Seventh Circuit rules it was made in error

The Big Chill: Inmates contend Cook County cheating on ensuring warm jail cells

Help us investigate the Cook County court system.

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