11th Judicial Circuit

Chief Judge Casey Costigan and Associate Judge Amy McFarland said litigants aren't doing themselves any favors by using artificial intelligence in place of public defenders.

Hosted by the League of Women Voters, the event profiled three recent laws aimed at reforming bail, public defense and relief for formerly incarcerated people who've served their time.

The former prosecutor became a judge in the 11th Judicial Circuit in 2023. He presides over the circuit-wide Veterans Treatment Court.

Justices from the state's highest court say geographic disparities have affected access to public defenders, particularly in rural counties. A new law aimed at promoting equity across the state has two years to be fully implemented.

Justices Elizabeth Rochford and Mary K. O'Brien said they were impressed by the state's only problem-solving court addressing child welfare cases. Their stop in McLean County was part of Rochford's effort to visit all 25 judicial circuits in Illinois.

The state's only circuitwide problem-solving court, formed in 2018, serves veterans charged with non-violent crimes in McLean, Ford, Livingston, Logan and Woodford counties. The program's graduation rate hovers near 90%.

County officials are aware of several attempts to gain access to personal information, including credit card numbers, by threatening arrest for missing jury duty in Logan County.

Young will primarily hear cases in Logan County, filling a vacancy left by Judge Bill Workman's retirement from the bench.

A federal ruling restoring AmeriCorps grant funding in states that sued over the Trump administration's dismantling of the program may help keep important legal assistance available in McLean County.

The Department of Justice released guidance that state and local governments must create fully accessible websites and social media presences to avoid lawsuits related to the American with Disabilities Act.