Automated Court Reminder System

In January 2016, the Circuit Court of Cook County and Cook County criminal justice agencies discussed developing initiatives designed to aid in the reduction of Cook County’s Average Daily Population (ADP) within its detention facilities.

One proposed strategy included the development of ways to advise defendants of their impending court date. Upon further analysis, it was determined that a court reminder system would be effective in meeting this goal.

The court reminder system was designed to:

• Reduce the number of Failures to Appear (FTA) before a judge and thereby reduce the numbers of bench warrants issued.
• Reduce the Cook County jail’s ADP and the related financial and social costs of incarceration.

As a result, the Office of the Chief Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County launched a reminder system in December 2017 called the Automated Court Reminder System (ACRS). This free and voluntary service provides telephonic and/or text message court date reminders to individuals charged with a misdemeanor or felony offense.

More specifically, ACRS provides defendants with details of their next court appointment, including the date, time and courthouse location for their next scheduled appearance. Individuals will receive a reminder 14, 7 and 2 days before their next court date, should they choose to register with the system.

This system includes the collaboration and exchange of relevant court event data between various law enforcement and court related operations, including the Chicago Police Department, Office of the Clerk of the Circuit Court, Public Defender’s Office, Chief Judge’s Office, Cook County Sheriff’s Office and the Cook County Bureau of Technology.

As part of its continued efforts to promote ACRS, in 2023 the court developed a wallet-sized palm card for distribution to all municipal police departments within Cook County. Interested police departments may request additional stock of palm cards if desired.