News Archive

The Cook County Circuit Court’s Second Municipal District Court in Skokie is hosting a ceremony on November 8 – three days before Veterans Day – for graduates of its Veterans Treatment Court.

The Polish Daily News joined us for Friday's Restorative Justice Community Court graduation ceremony. Read their account here:

https://www.dziennikzwiazkowy.com/artykul/123599,wasza-sprawa-zostaje-o…

When the Avondale Restorative Justice Community Court graduated its record 26 participants earlier today, it did so with the help of dozens of community volunteers who are the heart and soul of these local initiatives.

Markham's drug, mental health and veterans' treatment courts hosted a joint graduation ceremony, Tuesday afternoon, to celebrate six graduates who have gotten their lives back on track and are contributing to their communities. Read about it in the Chicago Tribune:

Court program helps inmates 'put their problems behind them' (chicagotribune.com)

This past Saturday, September 28, eight Cook County judges helped citizens get their driver’s licenses returned in a forum at Malcolm X College. More than 90 Cook County residents were able to successfully reinstate their licenses at the event, allowing them to again legally drive. Issues needing resolution often include unpaid fees, and the judges determined who qualified for waivers or other relief. Cook County officials have held a total of 11 of these forums, starting in July 2019. The eight judges helping on Saturday were Traffic Division Presiding Judge Diann K.

The Circuit Court of Cook County will host a job fair on Wednesday, October 9 for individuals interested in a role at the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center.

Applicants can kickstart their careers with on-the-spot pre-screens for positions in direct care, security, cosmetology/barbering and more. 

Elijah Bell, plagued by what he described as traumatizing abuse as a child, began getting into trouble at a young age. First it was stealing, and then drug use.

Bell, 55, is now sober, lives at a south suburban rehabilitation center and works in a garden. He is one of six graduates from the Circuit Court of Cook County’s Problem-Solving Courts who will be honored during a Tuesday afternoon (Oct. 1) ceremony in Markham.

The Circuit Court of Cook County’s Domestic Violence Division has helped nearly 2,000 people during its after-hours pilot program for filing petitions for emergency orders of protection, now entering its third year.

Between September 6, 2022 and August 18, 2024, judges working between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m. on weekdays and between 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. on weekends have conducted hearings regarding 1,925 petitions for civil emergency orders of protection. Of these, 1,477 have been granted. 

The Executive Committee of the Circuit Court of Cook County has considered the circumstances under which the Hon. Peggy Chiampas, an associate judge in the Criminal Division, entered an order restricting a person’s presence in the courthouse for possessing a cellphone in a courtroom.