emonkus – Chicago Council of Lawyers

Cook County Judge Under State Disciplinary Investigation after Allegedly Sharing Racist Meme

Judge Caroline Glennon-Goodman, a Cook County judge, is under disciplinary review for allegedly sending a racist meme in a text message. As reported by Injustice Watch and WBEZ, the meme depicts an AI-generated image of a Black child and a Black child’s leg with an electronic monitor on his ankle, c...

Membership in the Council

We were glad so many of you joined us at our members' meeting in October and at our fall fundraiser with Chicago Appleseed in November. We have exciting plans for membership engagement in 2025, so we hope you will renew your membership or join today! Board member Jennifer W.Y. Lee—Diversity, Equ...

Judicial Retention Election Results

Tuesday was the last day provisional ballots can be counted and it appears one Cook County Circuit Court judge will be losing their seat. Shannon O'Malley gained only 58% Yes for Retention votes. All members of the Alliance of Bar Associations rated Judge O'Malley not recommended for retention. In a...

Judicial Evaluations Available Now for the 2024 General Election: The Chicago Council of Lawyers Finds 4 Judges Not Qualified and 12 Judges Well Qualified

The Chicago Council of Lawyers has released our recommendations for the judicial retention ballot in the November 2024 general election. The Committee to Elect Qualified Judges' sample ballot is also available for download.You can read the full post on our State Judicial Evaluations page. The CC...

NEW: Second-Ever Class of the Future Justice Lawyers of Chicago Capstone Report, “School or Prisons,” Now Published

The forward, below, was written by David Schrodt, Board Member of the National Appleseed Network, Board Member of the Chicago Council of Lawyers, and Leader of the Collaboration for Justice’s FJLOC Working Group This report is authored by the second-ever class of the Future Justice Lawyers of Chi...

Letters to the Editor Commentary

Stoking fears about DNC protests gets in the way of right to peacefully protest Now, more than ever, we must renew our collective commitment to amplifying voices outside institutions of power, writes the Chicago Council of Lawyers. By Letters to the Editor Aug 13, 2024, 2:00pm CDT Chicago...

Transit Table partners pass HB277

HB277—a bill that amends Illinois law to no longer suspend driver's licenses for failure to appear in court for traffic tickets—has passed both houses and now heads to the governor for signing! Illinois will join twelve other states that no longer restrict driving privileges for failure to appear in...

Threats of Punishment Don’t Create Safety

In an editorial Friday, the Sun-Times reports that State Senate Republicans want to toughen the law and upgrade order of protection violations from a misdemeanor to a Class 4 felony. The editorial suggests this will deter violence and create safety. Unfortunately, that is a misconception. The Dep...

NEW REPORT – When You’re a Hammer, Everything’s a Nail: Examining the “Progressive Prosecutor” Movement and Possibilities for Future Reform

Byline: Naomi Johnson (she/they) is the Co-Executive Director of Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts. They lead all research and policy projects for the organization – centering community voices alongside evidence-driven approaches. Naomi graduated from Washington University in St. Louis with a...