Illinois legislature passed an amendment in 2016 giving victims of domestic violence the chance to present the abuse as a basis for mitigating sentences for crimes they committed. After initial resistance by Cook County prosecutors, that office is now taking an expansive interpretation of whether victims of abuse that was relevant to their crimes can win relief.
The upcoming retention election for 59 Cook County circuit judges has drawn attention for the handful of judges on the ballot whose record is marred by controversial past actions. Less attention-getting are the judges on the ballot whose work has been exemplary. A complete guide to all the judges on the ballot can be found in the Injustice Watch guide. https://www.injusticewatch.org/interactives/judicial-guide/index.html
A year after Cook County adopted sweeping bond reforms, the number of inmates held pretrial because they cannot make bail has dropped significantly. But with increasing frequency, bond court judges are ignoring the order that they not hold suspects by setting bail they cannot afford
Carl Williams was convicted of being part of a group that committed a carjacking, rape, and murder. Three members of the group said he was involved, and he confessed. But the three other suspects, and Williams, have since said he had nothing to do with it, and that Chicago police coerced their statements. After years of delay, Carl Williams’s day in court approaches.
A downstate Illinois defendant was acquitted of charges, but the county charged him more than $40,000 in administering his bond and pretrial detention. An Illinois appeals court last month upheld the fee, to chagrin of bond reform advocates.
Illinois Supreme Court justice since 1994, Charles Freeman announced he is stepping down. P. Scott Neville Jr. will replace him. Freeman was the first African American to serve on the state high court; Neville will be the second.
State court officials plan to install equipment that will record eviction court hearings. But timing is not certain. In the meantime, tenants remain without record of what occurred, making appeals difficult.
It was not business-as-usual in the Cook County judicial primaries last week. Candidates with blemishes on their record were disfavored by voters. Judges already serving by appointment, or candidates who came out of the prosecutors’ office, found those perceived advantages did not sway voters. And Latinos seemed to gain strength at the expense of the traditional dominance of Irish names.
Ubi O’Neal was belatedly added as a candidate in the March primary for Cook County judge. That makes him the fourth candidate in the field with a past discipline from the Illinois Supreme Court.
Most Illinois attorneys spend their career never being disciplined by the state. Three seeking judgeships in March primary are not so fortunate.