Latest News - Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts

At Public Hearing, Chicago Appleseed & Chicago Council of Lawyers Oppose Proposed Rule to Allow Videoconferenced Criminal Proceedings

Chicago Appleseed and Chicago Council of Lawyers gave testimony at an Illinois Supreme Court Rules Committee Public Hearing yesterday, contributing to a discussion of the merits and drawbacks of conducting criminal proceedings via video. The Committee studies proposed rules and makes recommendations...

Assets Matter: Promoting Economic Stability

We were thrilled to be featured in our parent organization's weekly newsletter, Appleseed This Week! Here's the complete article, covering our work with the Illinois Asset Building Group: Two years of Chicago Appleseed's work on small dollar lending culminated this...

Testimony: Justice Advocates Oppose Videoconferenced Criminal Proceedings

Last week, Chicago Appleseed, Chicago Council of Lawyers, and several other criminal justice advocates submitted testimony objecting to an Illinois Supreme Court Proposal 12-01 (P.R. 0196). Proposal 12-01 creates a rule permitting a criminal defendant to appear in many different proceedings via clo...

Policy Brief: Use of Data in Criminal Court Performance Measurement

Our latest policy brief, "Use of Data in Criminal Court Performance Measurement" is now available. This brief explores the benefits of measuring criminal court performance, shares two case studies of where doing so has been successful, and then offers one potential application to Cook County: t...

“Services Not Jail”

In a recent column, Rev. Alexander Sharp, who is Executive Director Emeritus for Protestants for the Common Good, calls for a "New Paradigm" for drug policy. The paradigm prioritizes treating the underlying cause of crime--e.g., poverty, homelessness, addiction, or abuse--over jailing the individual...