Office Statements

Letter to the Chicago City Council to urge them to reject the proposed ordinance amending Chapter 8-16 of the Chicago Municipal Code relating to juvenile conduct and parental responsibility. While the ordinance has been framed as a public safety measure, its penalty scheme is a disproportionate approach to problematic youth behavior that increases the City’s litigation risk.

The Law Office of the Cook County Public Defender has opposed the State’s Attorney’s felony bypass policy since its inception, and we oppose any expansion.

A coalition of legal services, immigrant justice and civil rights, and domestic violence organizations is celebrating the early morning passage of statewide legislation to ban civil arrests in and around Illinois state courthouses. HB1312 extends protections recently enacted by court order in Cook County to all Illinois residents and enables civil penalties for violations of the law.

The Law Office of the Cook County Public Defender applauds Chief Judge Tim Evans for his general administrative order banning civil arrests in and around courthouses in Cook County.

The Law Office of the Cook County Public Defender and 13 criminal and civil legal aid and social services organizations, including nine specializing in serving survivors of domestic and sexual violence, formally petitioned the court today.

The Law Office of the Cook County Public Defender congratulates Judge Charles Beach II on his election as the new Chief Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County. 

This week, the number of people in Cook County Jail exceeded 6,000 for the first time in more than three years. The Law Office of the Cook County Public Defender is deeply concerned about the recent rise in pretrial jailing—incarceration before any decision on guilt or innocence has been made by a judge or jury. 

The Law Office of the Cook County Public Defender urges the Chicago City Council to reject the proposed “snap” curfew ordinance. This proposal is a throwback to past failures, allowing law enforcement to issue curfews on brief notice, with little or no opportunity for young people and their caregivers to respond appropriately.

The Cook County Public Defender’s Office is deeply concerned about the expansion of the State’s Attorney’s program that allows Chicago Police Department officers to bypass felony review in cases involving gun possession.

On January 25, 2024, the Law Office of the Cook County Public Defender notified the Clerk of the Circuit Court, Iris Y. Martinez, and her staff that her Office had publicly exposed confidential juvenile records via their recently launched criminal case records search function on their website.