News Room

For the first time since 2020, and 2014 before that, Valentine’s Day lands on a Friday, which also happens to be the most popular day for courthouse weddings. 

Judge Diann Marsalek, who presides over marriage court, is predicting a higher-than-usual profusion of lace and flowers next Friday in addition to the typical pink and red decorations.

Marsalek said Friday is typically the busiest wedding day because couples can celebrate over the weekend. On the court’s busiest days, judges can marry between 200 and 250 couples.

Chief Judge Timothy C. Evans has appointed the Hon. Andrea M. Buford to serve as Acting Presiding Judge of the Child Protection Division.

Judge Buford replaces Presiding Judge Robert Balanoff, who retired on Thursday, January 30th.

“Judge Buford has a great deal of experience in this highly sensitive and vital division of the Cook County Circuit Court,” said Judge Evans. “She is known for her compassion, knowledge and hard work, and I am sure she will do an excellent job in her new position.”

Two state agencies with authority over Illinois juvenile detention center operations have given the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center (JTDC) exemplary reviews in separate reports issued in recent weeks.

The Criminal Division of the Circuit Court of Cook County is expected to resume on schedule Friday morning, Jan. 24., following an investigation into a threat made to the Leighton Criminal Courthouse.

Due to the extremely cold weather predicted for Tuesday, January 21 that may adversely impact the health and safety of court personnel and litigants, the Circuit Court of Cook County is encouraging participants to attend court remotely, if possible, said Chief Judge Timothy C. Evans.

“The Office of the Chief Judge has completed a review of the circumstances surrounding Lacramioara Beldie’s tragic death on Nov. 19. Our office has gathered transcripts and court records from the civil and criminal proceedings against the accused, Constantin Beldie. The decision by the Court not to detain Beldie on Oct.

Cook County court documents should be more accessible this year, thanks to a $17,000 Disability Accessibility Improvement grant awarded by the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Access to Justice.

ABC 7's Leah Hope covered Monday's swearing in of 40 new Cook County judges.

Circuit Court of Cook County Chief Judge Timothy Evans speaking out on domestic violence cases as 40 new judges sworn in - ABC7 Chicago

CBS 2 coverage of Adoption Day 2024

Ten children join forever families as Cook County celebrates National Adoption Day - CBS Chicago

ABC 7 coverage of Adoption Day 2024

10 children have adoptions made official in Cook County court at Daley Center in Chicago in honor of National Adoption Day 2024 - ABC7 Chicago

NBC 5 coverage of Adoption Day 2024

Children welcomed into new families on National Adoption Day – NBC Chicago

WGN TV coverage of Adoption Day 2024

10 Chicago kids join forever families in National Adoption Day-eve ceremony | WGN-TV

From the pages of the Cook County Chronicle:

Court-program participants given second chance - Chronicle Media

Ten children will be joined to eight loving families on Friday at a National Adoption Day ceremony hosted at the Daley Center courthouse.

Injustice Watch explores how the order entitles tenants to quickly receive information about whether their landlords are being sued for building code violations.

Cook County Chief Judge issues eviction court reform order | Injustice Watch

In January, Tyshun Rule was behind the wheel of his car, hands trembling, during a traffic stop in which officers found a loaded gun. Rule owned the gun legally but is alleged to have committed a concealed carry violation. An aggravated unlawful use of a weapon conviction likely meant prison time for the 28-year-old.

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.

The Avondale Restorative Justice Community Court on Friday will host the largest graduation ceremony in the court’s four-year history. The 26 graduates will then have their non-violent cases dismissed and their records eventually expunged in recognition of this accomplishment.

The ceremony will begin at 10 a.m. Friday, Nov. 1, at Resurrection Hall of St. Hyacinth Basilica, 3636 West Wolfram Street in Chicago. Members of the media and public are welcome to attend.

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. 

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.

Cook County Chronicle wrote a story on Chief Judge Timothy C. Evans and Traffic Division Presiding Judge Diann Marsalek participating in the annual backpack donation drive to ensure residents of the Juvenile Temporary Detention Center have the supplies they need to start a new school year.

Judges give backpacks to Detention Center residents - Chronicle Media (chronicleillinois.com)

Residents of the Cook County Circuit Court’s Juvenile Temporary Detention Center will get a fresh start to the upcoming school year, having received a new backpack filled with all of the supplies needed for successful year.

The Cook County Chronicle, today, features the Aug. 5 graduation of seven participants of the Bridgeview Problem-Solving Courts. The seven graduates completed programming from drug, mental health and veterans’ treatment courts.  

Problem-Solving Court helps individuals find way forward - Chronicle Media (chronicleillinois.com)