Category Archives: Criminal Law

Category Archives: Criminal Law

Moderating Continuing Legal Ed Program on Criminal Law

Today, I will moderate an all-day continuing education program on “Criminal Law: Back to Basics.” The Illinois State Bar Association seminar will feature such topics such as case law and legislative updates, pre-trial motions, jury selection, guilty pleas and hearsay and constitutional issues. As I have stated elsewhere on this blog, continuing legal education is […]

Drug problems and drug arrests can happen to persons of all walks of life

So often, I am contacted by parents of young people who have been arrested for drug offenses. As today’s Chicago Tribune reports, https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/suburbs/wilmette_kenilworth/ct-tl-wilmette-heroin-forum-20130128,0,7810981.story, even young people who have been privileged to receive great advantages may succumb to the temptation of hard drugs such as heroin. When that happens, many face the criminal justice system. Having […]

ICJIA releases searchable database on Illinois criminal statutes

As the former Executive Director of the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority, I am proud that my former agency has released a new searchable database for the Illinois’ criminal statutes. In the past, the Authority has not only constructed model databases for criminal justice purposes but has also conducted award-winning criminal justice research. The database […]

Trends in Illinois Felony Sentencing Illustrate the Need for Good Representation

The recent statistics published by the Illinois Sentencing Policy Advisory Council in its research briefing, “Illinois Felony Sentencing: A Retrospective,” https://www.icjia.state.il.us/public/pdf/Bulletins/Research_Brief_SPAC_Felony_Sentences_052011.pdf show how many individuals are becoming statistics in the criminal justice system. The report found that despite reductions in reported Illinois crime from the early 1990s through 2008, the number of persons on probation, […]

The Illinois Supreme Court on a warrantless search of a probationer’s home

On May 19, 2011, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled that a probationer’s who prospectively agree to searches of his home while on probation may not then challenge the legal basis for such a search where contraband is seized. In People of the State of Illinois v. Samuel Absher (Opinion 108441), the Court ruled that when […]

At what age is someone considered a juvenile?

The answer to that question depends on the offense. In general, persons charged with misdemeanors in Illinois are juveniles until the age of 18 and those charged with felonies until the age of 17. However, and it is a big however, 15 and 16 year olds facing certain felony charges are automatically charged as adults […]

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