Criminal Defense

For the last decade, and perhaps more, police in Illinois have been allowed to use investigative alerts to take action. In many cases, they were allowed to act without a warrant due to the alert. However, a recent ruling has put an end to this process. According to local news reports, the police force in Chicago was the only one…

Charges stemming from criminal conduct in the workplace can damage professional reputations. Even after paying restitution and committing to act with more integrity, white-collar criminals may struggle to prove to others their loyalty.  A damaged reputation can create difficulty finding employment. It can also impact the likelihood of promotions and challenge professional growth and success. With time and determination, people…

The United States isn’t the biggest country in the world, nor are its laws the most Draconian. So why does the U.S. continue to have the highest prison population in the world? According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS), roughly 2.2 million adults were behind bars in this country in 2016. Here are some of the reasons why: 1.…

Murder is just about the most serious criminal charge anybody can face — and attempted murder is treated no more lightly. If you’re convicted of attempted first degree murder, for example, that’s a Class X felony that carries a minimum 20-year sentence (with an additional 15 years tacked on if a firearm was used). What exactly equals an “attempt” to…

You’re hauled in for questioning, and the police seem strangely confident that you’re the right suspect. Finally, one of the detectives lets it slip: There’s fingerprint evidence against you. So what? Television shows that focus around forensic evidence makes it seem like fingerprint analysis is a disciplined science with machines that spit out incontrovertible results upon which a prosecutor can…

A 71-year-old former employee of the University of Illinois (UI) pleaded guilty to the theft of two rare musical books from the school’s library in revenge for perceived wrongs in the way that he was treated. The books were valued at more than $500 each. Their absence didn’t go unnoticed, but nobody had any idea who had taken them until…

Tax season — even though it has been extended this year — is still a stressful period for a lot of professionals. The tax code is increasingly complex, and that often leaves people worrying that they’re going to get into trouble for some kind of mistake — especially when they’re self-employed. A lot of people are confused about the difference…

Imagine this: You’re accused of a serious crime. You know you’re innocent, and you think that you will be able to prove your innocence in court — if the prosecutor’s case doesn’t fall through before then. Just the same, you’re hustled off to jail and separated from your family, your job and your life and told that you can only…

Many people in Illinois have raised serious concerns about the continuing impact of racial bias on prosecution, conviction and sentencing in criminal cases. One of the most important areas of study has been implicit bias, when people’s decisions are affected by unconscious stereotypes and prejudices. Implicit bias rests on the acceptance of socially propagated stereotypes about a racial group rather…

A number of people in Illinois and across the country have been exonerated even many years after a criminal conviction on the basis of DNA evidence examined later on. While DNA evidence is often entered at trial by both the prosecution and the defense, there are circumstances where DNA could be re-examined after a conviction. These kinds of requests, especially…