Public Defender

The new law brings reform to the state's public defense system for the first time in decades. Public defenders play an outsized role in juvenile and child welfare courts.

The FAIR Act seeks to establish a state public defenders office to ease equity gaps for under-resourced counties, cap caseloads and provide oversight and advocacy. Illinois is one of five states without such an office.

When Carla Barnes closed a black robe around her shoulders for the first time on Thursday, she marked history as the first Black judge in the 11th…

A New York Times report shed new light on overworked and underfunded public defenders. It found public defenders in Louisiana assigned 200, 300, or even…