Blog: Smart Criminal Justice Policies Gain Momentum in Chicago, Cook County

County and City officials have taken bold yet prudent steps toward sensible, cost-effective public safety policies. The County has expanded use of electronic monitoring and the City is now considering issuing a fine in lieu of arrest for marijuana possession-a move many suburbs have already made. Bo...

Annual Fundraising Luncheon: Thank You

We would like to thank everyone who attended our annual fundraising luncheon. In addition, we want to thank: Senator Kwame Raoul - Keynote speaker and recipient of the Commitment to Justice Award for his successful effort to end the death penalty in Illinois; Cynthia Canary - Recipient of the Comm...

Anonymity and Integrity in Researching Judicial Performance

Recently, Chicago Appleseed was asked about unsolicited anonymous comments about judicial retention candidates and whether they play a role in the data collection for the Judicial Performance Commission of Cook County's (the JPC) evaluations. The integrity of our data is paramount and we strive to u...

Community-Involved Efforts Lead to Record CPS Attendance Level

Chicago Public Schools enjoyed a 94.7% attendance rate on the district's first day of school. The turnout this Tuesday marks a four-year high, and a jump from 92.9% last year. CPS attributes the turnout largely to coordinated efforts among the schools, community organizations, and families. One of t...

What We Read, August 22-26

Judicial Elections and Judiciary Reform: Last month, the Oklahoma Judicial Ethics Advisory Panel issued an opinion with guidelines on judges and the use of social media. Immigration Court Reform: On August 17, in Chicago, the Department of Homeland Security held a public hearing on its controversial...

CPS Principal Pay-for-Performance Plan Opens the Door for Community Schools

Merit pay is a notoriously tricky business. Reward short-term returns and you hang the future out to dry. Or, as we've seen in a growing number of school districts across the country, you run the risk of teachers and administrators taking shortcuts (ie, cheating) to grab the brass ring. Mayor Emmanu...

What We Read, August 12-19

Criminal Justice Court Reform: Even conservative states are adopting lighter sentencing policies in response to unsustainable prison costs, reports the New York Times. Matthew Iglesias questions the social, political, and economic rationale behind increasingly curtailing formerly incarcerated indivi...