The Law Office of the Cook County Public Defender was proud to be part of the Midwest Immigrant Defenders Alliance (MIDA), a collaborative deportation defense program in partnership with the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC), The Immigration Project, The Resurrection Project, Erie Neighborhood House, The MICA Project, and Children's Legal Center. The Vera Institute conducted an independent evaluation of how legal representation can have an immense impact on outcomes in immigration proceedings.
News
The Law Office of the Cook County Public Defender proudly announces the opening of its second community-based office, the Freedom Defense Center of Austin (FDCA), located inside the Aspire Center for Workforce Innovation on Chicago’s West Side.
New community office will bring holistic legal defense and support services to Chicago’s South Side.
The Law Office of the Cook County Public Defender filed an amicus brief in the Illinois Supreme Court case of People v. Gray, which addresses whether a past adult criminal conviction that would today be handled in juvenile court can serve as a predicate offense for purposes of charging someone under the armed habitual criminal statute.
Mitigation Specialists play a key role in public defense, advocating for a fair sentence by putting together a thorough report on the person’s life story. This is important because when a person comes before a judge for sentencing, the court is often aware of only a sliver of their circumstances.
The Cook County Public Defender’s Office announced the swearing in of 25 new attorneys who are now Assistant Public Defenders in our office. This group of attorneys joins our professional family and our mission to protect the fundamental rights, liberties and dignity of each person whose case has been entrusted to us by providing the finest legal representation.
The Office of the Cook County Public Defender was represented at the MacArthur Foundation biannual Safety and Justice Challenge Network meeting by Public Defender Sharone Mitchell, Director of Community Engagement Alexandria Santistevan and Director of Legislative and External Affairs Sav Felix.
The Cook County Public Defender’s Arrest Hotline – 844-817-4448 – operates 365 days a year, 24 hours a day, taking calls and providing vital legal representation for people being detained by law enforcement anywhere in Chicago and Cook County.
Do you need help getting back your suspended or revoked driver's license? The Cook County Public Defender's Office is proud to co-host the seventh installment of the Driver's License Reinstatement Expo. The expo is September 17 at Malcolm X College and volunteer attorneys from our office will participate.
In a historic step, attorneys from the Cook County Public Defender's Office Immigration Unit Pilot have begun representing immigrants in bond hearings and removal proceedings before the Chicago Immigration Court.