During her tenure as Cook County State's Attorney, Kim Foxx received criticism from the Fraternal Order of Police for policy reforms that put law enforcement under scrutiny. In a post on LinkedIn penned nine months after her departure, Foxx shared more details on the reason she chose not
It was already a quarter to three when I got to the courthouse yesterday, and I just knew the visit was going to be a waste of time. Ten days earlier, I’d ordered a file for someone who asked me to research their case. But based on my track
In July 1997, Antonio McDowell walked into Chicago’s Area 5 police station to report he had been shot. But within hours, the 21-year-old went from victim to suspect — accused of a murder and a carjacking that police and prosecutors said were committed by the same person. Nearly three decades
In a post-tenure conversation, Foxx reflects on her prosecutorial legacy, institutional resistance, and the dangers of unchecked police power. In the five months since Kim Foxx left office, Cook County has launched a pilot project that allows police to file felony gun charges in two communities on Chicago's
While often discussed in legal and ethical terms, wrongful convictions also impose considerable fiscal burdens on state and local governments says Michelle Mbekeani-Wiley former head of the Cook County State's Attorney Conviction Integrity Unit.
Residents of two police districts in Chicago may now be charged with felony gun possession without prior review by prosecutors under a pilot program that police and prosecutors say is designed to streamline the felony review process. Without seeking public input, the Felony Review Bypass Pilot Program went into effect
On behalf of the state of Maryland, Governor Wes Moore apologized to Marando Warthen a man who spent 39 years in state prison after being wrongfully convicted of murder and other charges in 1984. “There are no words that can be said or shared to tell you how sorry I
Chicago theatre houses have been home to The Pillowman, a dark comedy by British playwright Martin McDonagh that tells the fictional story of a chilling interrogation of two brothers accused of committing several recent child murders since it was first produced in the U.S. two decades ago. But this
Reverend Al Sharpton rebuked newly sworn-in President Donald Trump for his campaign promise to pardon more than 1,500 people who had been convicted of crimes, including attacking law enforcement officers, during a riot at the U.S. capitol four years ago. "How are you, Mr. Trump, on the
Illinois motorists and their passengers could be subject to search and prosecution for possession of cannabis if law enforcement officers say they detect the smell of raw cannabis during a police stop. That's what Illinois Supreme Court ruled in a December 5 opinion. The case came to the
During her eight years as top prosecutor, Kim Foxx's office vacated 248 convictions, according to a final report released on Nov. 30, Foxx's final day as Cook County State's attorney. "When I first took this seat in 2016, Chicago was widely known as
In a letter published in the TRiiBE, Frank Chapman, community organizer, executive director of the National Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression and education director an field organizer of the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression says Chicago must build upon the legacy of former Cook County State'
At a "Keeping Up With Kim" event in July 2023 top prosecutor Kim Foxx walked the line between ensuring that her office would pursue justice for victims of crime while also establishing policies aimed at undoing longstanding unfairness in Cook County's criminal justice system, Illinois and
The Illinois Supreme Court on Thursday reversed the conviction of Jussie Smollett agreeing that the Cook County State's Attorney's office unlawfully reneged on a deal to drop charges filed against the former Empire actor in 2019, instead re-prosecuting him on felony disorderly conduct charges. "We
With prosecutors from the four most populous counties by his side, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul on Tuesday announced the establishment of a conviction integrity unit in his office – the first statewide effort to acknowledge there are people in the more than two dozen Illinois prisons convicted of crimes that
Community activists working on criminal justice issues were ambivalent about their choices for the next occupant of the White House and doubtful either of the candidates in the presidential race would have an impact on local concerns. "I think he who will go without a name clearly shows America
Judge Carol Howard grew up on Chicago's West Side into a family of six children and became the first lawyer in her family's history. In a survey about her work, Howard credits the listening skills she learned from her parents as an asset she employs every
An appellate court panel on Friday reversed a circuit court judge’s ruling to uphold the 21-year-old criminal convictions of Kevin Jackson.
After 39 hours of interrogation, Clayborn Smith in 1992 signed a statement confessing to the murders of his grandfather and great aunt. At the trial two years later, he filed a motion to suppress his confession. But the presiding judge didn't believe Smith's allegations that police
Throughout his legal career, George N. Leighton fought for justice. Does the courthouse named in his honor reflect his legacy?
Moms of adult children often lament that their sons and daughters don't call home frequently enough. But that's not the issue for Denise Spencer, who says there have been times when her son has called her as many as ten times a day. Spencer's
The Illinois Supreme Court voted to uphold the conviction of a man on an unlawful possession of a weapon charge, a misdemeanor that carried a 30-day jail term, even though state prosecutors pursued the case without independently verifying that the defendant violated state law. While all seven justices voted to
A group of mothers who say their sons have been kidnapped by the Illinois Department of Corrections are asking outgoing Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx to use a UN report as a catalyst to release from prison more people who say that police tortured them into confessing
High court justices reverse lower court sanction on prosecutor for allowing misleading testimony in grand jury hearing After two lower courts dismissed his case with prejudice, the Illinois Supreme Court in a 4-3 decision voted to continue prosecuting a man who says the State manipulated a grand jury to secure