All Illinois Voters Can Now Vote By Mail!

The Cook County blog reports that, for the first time in state history, all registered Illinois voters may mail in their vote. “In the past, you needed an absentee excuse to vote by mail,” Cook County Clerk David Orr said. “All voters are now eligible for a mail ballot, bringing one more convenient...
March 1, 2012

Early Voting in Illinois Starts Today!

Early voting for the March 20 General Primary Election in Illinois starts today! Voters may use any early voting site no matter where you live. Early voting sites are open Monday - Saturday 9 am - 5 pm, February 27 - March 15.  A complete list of locations and hours sites is available at the Chica...
February 27, 2012

Links of Interest

What We Read, February 20-26, 2012 Criminal Justice Reform: The big news in criminal justice last week was Governor Quinn's announcement that he plans to close Tamms Prison. The move is applauded by prison reform groups. The Justice Policy Institute wrote about taking politics out of the parol...
February 26, 2012

Safety in Numbers?

The Atlantic profiled the work of University of Pennsylvania statistician Richard Berk last month. Berk uses statistical prediction models to conduct risk assessment of criminal offenders. Berk’s expertise is being sought at nearly every stage of the criminal-justice process. Maryland is running an...
February 22, 2012

Policy Perspectives: Dr. Shari Diamond on Bond Court

Recently, Chicago Appleseed sat down with Northwestern University Professor of Law and social psychologist Dr. Shari Diamond to discuss her remarkable recent work on courts and juries. In 2010, Dr. Diamond published a study (pdf) of Cook County Bond Court establishing a causal relationship betwee...
February 17, 2012