UPDATED 4:35 p.m. | McLean County Public Defender Carla Barnes has been appointed as the first Black woman to serve as a circuit judge in Illinois’ 11th Judicial Circuit.
Hundreds of probation officers from across Illinois are in Normal this week to learn new methods to help offenders stay in the community and further reduce the state’s incarceration rate.
UPDATED 2:40 p.m. | Bloomington Alderman Amelia Buragas is one of 22 people who’ve applied for two vacant judgeships on the Eleventh Judicial Circuit, officials said Tuesday.
Photo courtesty of Lee Milner, Illinois News Broadcasters Association
Two years after the Illinois Supreme Court decided to permanently allow cameras and microphones in courthouses, only half of counties statewide have actually implemented broadcast trial coverage.
For judges, every assignment has its challenges. The sheer volume of traffic court. The complexity of a murder or financial crimes case. The trailblazing nature of a specialty drug court.
Chief Judge Kevin Fitzgerald said Thursday he’ll move up his retirement date to this summer so the Eleventh Judicial Circuit avoids having too many vacancies on the bench later this year.
