Press Release |
The court facility at 2452 West Belmont Ave., which was re-opened this week to hear multiple-arrest cases during the Democratic National Convention (DNC), will close this afternoon. The decision was made following a successful and predominantly peaceful convention week.
In accord with the request of the City of Chicago on behalf of the Chicago Police Department, Chief Judge Timothy C. Evans has determined that the court at Belmont and Western will cease operations after the 4 p.m. court call today, Aug. 23. Following today’s 4 p.m. court call, the court will resume operations at its usual locations and pursuant to its regular schedule.
Evans said Chicago officials contacted him this (Friday) morning and thanked him for the Court’s preparation and staffing of the facility.
“All has worked well and there were no surprises,” Evans said. “With help from Cook County and the City of Chicago, police officers were able to devote maximum resources to maintaining security. This additional court resource enabled our community to ensure that we were able to ensure that the rights of all those arrested were respected.”
The court, court clerk, public defender, sheriff, state’s attorney and Chicago Bar Association made extensive preparations to handle an increased number of court proceedings in the event of multiple arrests during the period surrounding this week’s convention. In addition to staffing and equipping the additional, temporary court facility, several dozen judges made themselves available during the week to supplement the court’s normal criminal court resources.
The court expects to have statistical data, regarding the cases heard at the Belmont and Western facility, available within the coming week.
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