CROSSwalk to a Safe Summer – 6/8/14

Join CROSSwalk and hundreds of Chicagoans for a gathering in the South Side Avalon Park community.  Hear young people’s stories about the impact of violence, why employers are partnering with CROSSwalk to hire young people, and music by Verbal Kwest. More information at www.episcopalchicago.org/crosswalk Sunday, June 8th 3-5 PM Messiah & St. Bartholomew Episcopal Church […]

The Village Take Back #3 – Today!

The Village Take Back continues in Roseland as activists, community leaders and concerned citizens take to the streets to demand peace in our community.  Please add your voice to the chorus! Stop the Violence! Tuesday June 2nd 6:30 PM Kids off the Block 11618 S. Michigan

Put sensible limits on gun stores to prevent illegal trafficking

Chicago has many law-abiding gun owners who handle their weapons safely and responsibly. The ordinance proposed by Mayor Rahm Emanuel to regulate gun sales in the city is not about them. It’s about Chicago’s other gun owners: violent thugs who kill innocents as well as each other while terrorizing countless citizens with the ever-present threat […]

It’s the Right Time for Anger.. And for the truth. #NotOneMore

We stand by the Santa Barbara families who lost their loved ones in the Isla Vista shooting. Our hearts are broken with yours and we appreciate your anger. Thank you to Richard Martinez for speaking the truth. … Martinez, almost overcome with a grief that he knows and we know will never fade, not for […]

URGENT! Call to Action

G-Pac Friends- An important gun safety bill moved out of the Illinois House last week and will move to the Senate this week.  HB 4290 would increase the penalty on any Concealed Carry instructors who falsify any applications.  Read  the bill here. The bill is sponsored by Senator Michael Connelly.   Please call or email your Senator […]

2016 Paper Tiger Award – Young Professional Ticket

BUY YOUNG PROFESSIONALS TICKETS ONLINE Please join our Event Chair Secretary Arne Duncan for the 2016 Paper Tiger Award presentation honoring Father Michael Pfleger. DATE: Monday, September 19, 2016 TIME: 5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. LOCATION: THE DAWSON – 730 West Grand Avenue, Chicago, IL 60654 RSVP: Online or at 847.920.4722 TICKETS: $250 SPONSORSHIP LEVELS:  $10,000 – Event […]

GPAC Thanks the 31st Annual Lincoln Awards Luncheon Winners

GPAC would like to congratulate Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence and all of the award winners today at the Lincoln Awards Luncheon: Tom Dart, Alex Kotlowitz, Kwame Raoul and the Joyce Foundation. Thank you for your efforts this past year working to prevent the devastation caused by firearms to our families and communities.

Marshall assistant coach shot

‘Out of the blue for no reason’ The assistant boys’ basketball coach at Marshall Metro High School remained in critical condition this morning after he was shot in the Humboldt Park neighborhood while driving his daughter to school, police said. … “He’s just trying to teach people how to play basketball, get the kids off […]

Hadiya Pendleton’s parents address gun violence

… “Our family supports the Second Amendment and the right to bear arms — we are not trying to take anybody’s guns away, we are just trying to ensure that nobody else knows the sadness of losing a loved one to senseless gun violence.” … Click here for full story. (Chicago Tribune)

As the Lake County State’s Attorney, I am honored and humbled every day to lead the fight against crime, and to strive to ensure equal and just treatment under the law. I have been an attorney for twenty-two years – and each of those years has made me a stronger and smarter advocate for people, for ideas, and for the principles that unite us all.

I am so proud to lead an office of 140 dedicated colleagues who serve the public by prosecuting crime, advocating for victims, and planning crime prevention programs. I am also proud to work with hundreds of Lake County police officers on a daily basis to connect with every community and to develop comprehensive, holistic plans to respond to the mental health and economic crisis that arose from the COVID-19 pandemic.

On one particular day, July 4, 2022, I was saddened, inspired, and motivated by the bravery of so many people. We will always stand with the victims and honor the police and other first responders who ran toward the danger. Just as so many heroes that day thought only of themselves, I also witnessed the prosecutors in my office answer the call to serve survivors and their community – even on one of its darkest days.

Every moment that I have been your legal representative, I have worked tirelessly to oversee prosecutions and to implement policies that make my family and my neighbors safer in the short term and in the long term. That is the job of the State’s Attorney: to prosecute, to innovate, and to strategically plan.

I was raised in a small town. My parents are teachers, and from them, I learned that everyone must be treated equally and that America’s sacred mission is to provide a political, economic, and legal system that allows anyone to prosper regardless of the circumstances of their birth. After graduating from Knox College and the University of Chicago Law School, I spent two years at a first-rate civil law firm in Chicago where I learned that hard work and attention to detail on every case mean the difference between success and failure.

With my wonderful wife Stephanie, I am raising my two sons, Sam and Teddy, in Lake County. Nothing is more important to me than my family’s safety and I bring that passion and determination to protect all families with me to work every day.

I joined the Lake County Public Defender’s Office in 2003 and started my own law firm in 2009. From 2003 until 2020, I watched the Lake County legal system fail to prioritize violent crime, prevent wrongful prosecutions, or address racial disparities.

So, in 2019, I decided to run for State’s Attorney so that I could serve our community by improving a local legal system that cared more about covering up its mistakes and biases than uncovering new and innovative ways to help people.

I won the 2020 election, and became the first Democrat to hold this position in 40 years. Bringing in a new party wasn’t as important as ending 40 years of one mindset that had forgotten the people and that had failed to act urgently to develop new strategic plans to prevent crime while also ensuring that each prosecution is smart, moral, and just.

We have followed through on our promises. We have built the first-ever violent crimes unit, increased prosecutors in our domestic violence division, and vastly upgraded our cyber lab. Now, we have top-notch software and personnel to finally keep up with those who would exploit others.

We have been awarded a large federal grant to bring the first ever Human Trafficking Task Force to Lake County. We have deepened our investment in people by bringing in more victim specialists and raising the salaries of many of our prosecutors.

But the work goes on. We must expand our prevention efforts that are starting with the Gun Violence Prevention Initiative launched in 2022. And we know that the opioid crisis touches thousands of lives throughout this country.

I am proud to serve on the Executive Board of the Lake County Opioid Initiative which has been working tirelessly since its founding in 2012 to reverse a devastating trend of increased overdoses. In 2022, our office was part of a national settlement against opioid manufacturers and distributors.

As an attorney of 22 years, I have committed my life to helping people, and I have conducted over 70 jury trials in Lake County, and handled appeals that have culminated in over 20 oral arguments before the appellate court and Supreme Court of Illinois.

I see my time in this office as the next phase of helping a community that I love and where I have chosen to raise my family. In my first term, we have made Lake County safer and fairer through just prosecutions, constitutional policing, and innovative crime prevention policies.