Policy Statements – Chicago Council of Lawyers

New Research Documents Need For Deep Reform of Cook County Criminal Court Culture

In their new study documenting a litany of failings in the operation of the Cook County Felony Courts at 26th Street and California Avenue in Chicago, "How Culture Impacts Courtrooms: An Empirical Study of Alienation and Detachment in the Cook County Court System" ("study"), four law faculty authors...

Amicus in People v. Moore: There is no justice when access is random or when the rules are unpredictable

In May, Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts and Chicago Council of Lawyers joined an amicus brief submitted by the Children and Family Justice Center at Northwestern Pritzker School of Law in the Illinois Supreme Court case, People v. Moore. Our Collaboration for Justice is proud to add ou...

Open Letter to President Biden: End the Decades-Long Imprisonment of Men Held Without Charge at Guantánamo

The Chicago Council of Lawyers joins the International Committee of the Red Cross in calling on President Biden to release forthwith the nineteen men held without charge at Guantánamo for two decades, who already have been cleared by our government for release or transfer. Over twenty years ago,...

“Organized Retail Theft” Bill is an Extreme Approach to an Imaginary Problem

This week, the Illinois Retail Merchants’ Association succeeded in convincing the Illinois General Assembly to introduce legislation targeted at reducing “organized retail theft.” Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts and the Chicago Council of Lawyers vehemently opposed the bill, HB 1091, which...

Call to Support: Creating Opportunity for Illinoisans in Need (COIN II) Act

The statewide Creating Opportunity for Illinoisans in Need (COIN II) Act (IL HB 4423 and IL SB 3123) will increase monthly Temporary Assistance for Families in Need (TANF) grants to 50% of the federal poverty level and will implement a full passthrough and disregard policy f...

Support for SB 3635 to End Driver’s License Suspensions for Failures to Appear

UPDATE: HB 5588 has been assigned to committee for hearing on Wednesday, February 16. Please submit a witness slip in favor of the bill, as a "proponent," using this link before the hearing at 10:00 AM on Wednesday. On January 19, 2022, Illinois Senate Bill 3635 was filed by Sen. Celina...

Principles for Earned Release Sentencing Reform In Illinois

The Collaboration for Justice of Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts and the Chicago Council of Lawyers, along with a coalition of supporting organizations, have released an open letter to the Illinois Resentencing Task Force urging them to be guided by a set of shared principles for...

Chicago City Council must vote NO on the Mayor’s proposed civil asset forfeiture ordinance (O2021-4130)

Chicago’s Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced a plan to “start suing gang members to ‘take their assets’” in an attempt to curb community violence. Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts and the Chicago Council of Lawyers view the Mayor’s “Victims’ Justice Ordinance” (O2021-4130) as...

Response to Chicago Police Superintendent David Brown’s Ongoing Attacks on the Independence of the Judiciary

During a traffic stop on August 7, Chicago Police Department (CPD) Officer Ella French was shot and killed, and her partner was critically wounded. In the wake of this terrible event, emotions are understandably high as Officer French’s colleagues and loved ones continue to grieve and grapple with t...

Renewing Our Opposition of the Death Penalty and Calling for Action

During Donald Trump’s final seven months in the White House, the US Department of Justice executed 13 people. This followed a 17-year hiatus in federal executions; in the previous 60 years, only four other people had been executed by the federal government. The unseemly haste with which the Trump ad...

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