Tear gas, pepper balls, boarded-up doors, and masked agents with no identification, this is what people in Broadview are facing for simply showing up to defend their neighbors. www.youtube.com/shorts/PFeNj...

Chicago lawyers, law firms, and judges have played a pivotal role in challenging unlawful federal actions. From warrantless arrests to excessive force. Learn what’s happened, what courts have ruled, and why defending constitutional rights matters now more than ever. www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVx4...

CCL board member Robert Held is challenging Broadview’s protest hour restrictions outside the #ICE facility, arguing they place unconstitutional limits on peaceful assembly—especially for working people who can’t protest during a 9-6 window. @chicago.suntimes.com chicago.suntimes.com/news/2025/11...

Illinois Supreme Court Commission’s Lawyers’ Assistance Program is asking all Illinois judges & lawyers to participate in a confidential survey. Your input will help strengthen programs & services for lawyers facing challenges around stress, mental health, alcohol or substance use, & gambling.

Today - Riverwalk - downtown!

Thank you for joining us at our fall event! From policy to practice, we're transforming courts, reducing harms, and working toward a system of true justice.

When accountability is threatened, justice demands vigilance.  In this short video, Chicago Council of Lawyers member and attorney Robert Held shares a powerful account of ICE’s attempt to detain a child who recorded evidence against them.  www.youtube.com/shorts/jGJV3...

Rally to protest the teacher violently taken by federal agents at a private daycare this morning on Addison near Western.

Consistent with prior research that 911 calls decrease after the release of videos of police violence against unarmed Black men www.chicagotribune.com/2025/11/03/9...

In Illinois, juvenile detention centers are exempt from FOIA meaning the public can't access employee disciplinary records, confinement data, and policy manuals. As my editor @jonahshai.bsky.social once put it, it's much harder to get information about the youth jail than it is about the adult jail

Read our letter to Gov Pritzker & Mayor Thompson regarding reforms to the restrictions on protests in Broadview & to the police discretion employed there. chicagocouncil.org/letter-to-go...

my letter to the CEO, President, and COO of Services Corporation International, the owner of Dignity Memorial, which manages the cemetery in which my mom is buried that was being used as an ICE staging ground this afternoon.

Join us at Broadview tomorrow, Saturday, October 18, at 5:00 PM. Broadview ICE facility, 1930 Beach Street Come stand with a colleague defending constitutional principles when they are most needed.

@nlgchicago.bsky.social is trying to raise $10k to fund ongoing legal support for protesters. They've had to cover long shifts at Broadview, and their volunteers have been repeatedly assaulted by police in the process. More info with ways to donate here: instagram.com/p/DP36ITJja-W/

In the spirit of the CJ's order barring civil arrests of people participating in court, we've offered some resources and opportunities for community support in the pushback against ICE in Chicago. chicagocouncil.org/resources-fo...

NEWS: Cook County Chief Judge Tim Evans issued an order today meant to prevent immigration arrests -- "civil arrest" -- for individuals attending court proceedings in Cook County.

For the last five years, people being released from Cook County Jail have gotten out later and later at night. In 2021, ~14% of people got out between 11 pm and 3 am. In 2024, ~40% of all releases took place in those wee hours. My latest, for @chicagoreader.com chicagoreader.com/news/cook-co...

We stand in solidarity with AG James and others who have been targeted for reasons wholly antithetical to the pursuit of justice. We commit to doing all we can to ensure that the rule of law prevails and to resist the further corrosion of our system of justice. https://ow.ly/27wM50XaMc4

Board member and long time CCL member, Rob Held is quoted in this CBS story about protests outside the ICE facility in Broadview: www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news...

Dozens of local governments across the nation have signed on to an amicus brief in the Oregon/Portland/California lawsuit against Trump/DHS/DOD. www.courtlistener.com/docket/71554...

Chicago Appleseed is #hiring a creative, organized, and passionate Communications Assistant to join our team on a part-time basis (10-16 hours/week), starting in November. If you're interested or know someone who is, fill out the application at 🔗chicagoappleseed.org/apply.

Statement on Abuse of Power of ICE and Other Federal Agents in Chicago

if you're not sure who the Illinois State Police are there to protect, here's a helpful guide: the people they have their backs to, who they are not pushing or giving orders to, are the ones being protected @govpritzker.illinois.gov has deployed the state police to protect ICE operations

SHORT NOTICE: Today, Oct 2. Virtual Event. Adopt a Day-Laborer Corner workshop on how to show up in person, nonviolently, with courage, love, & urgency for our immigrant neighbors. National Day Laborer Organizing Network, Latino Union of Chicago, Casa DuPage host. www.mobilize.us/ndlon/event/...

The Chicago Council of Lawyers condemns what is happening with purported immigration enforcement in Broadview, Illinois. Read our statement here: chicagocouncil.org/2025-09-30-c...

See our post from September 16—The Independence of Federal Law Enforcement—Under Assault from long time board member Rob Held. chicagocouncil.org/the-independ...

www.chicagogapacoalition.com/general-9 the Grassroots Alliance for Police Accountability is searching for a full-time Campaign Coordinator.

Trump is targeting jurisdictions that have implemented money bond reforms. There's still some question about what exactly this means, but it's been reported that the order will "revoke federal funding from local and state governments that allow cashless bail." bit.ly/CCL-Protect-PFA

Since Illinois eliminating cash bail, this is probably the biggest change for the better to our criminal justice system. This is a huge deal for protecting people's constitutional rights!

Yesterday, @govpritzker.illinois.gov signed the FAIR Act into law! This historic legislation creates a Statewide Public Defender Office, marking the first major overhaul of the state’s trial-level public defense system since 1949. endmoneybond.org/2025/08/16/g...

President Trump has said he wants to end the Pretrial Fairness Act and bring back money bail in IL. We are asking people from across the state to call on their legislators & Governor Pritzker to defend this historic victory from the Trump administration’s lies: actionnetwork.org/letters/beat...

Thank you for over 900 donations of notebooks, folders, crayons, etc! We have one more day to finish the list so that supplies arrive in time for next week's visits. www.target.com/gift-registr...

Join us at the All Bar Networking Social 8/26 5:00pm at the Hubbard Inn! Ticket purchase includes a wristband drink package and appetizers. All members of Chicago's Legal Community are welcome. www.chicagobar.org/AllBarSocial

1st District today upheld Circuit Court that closed door arbitration hearings for the most serious #PoliceMisconduct cases violate Illinois public policy & do not serve the interests of the transparency. We're proud to have been amicus in the case. chicagocouncil.org/wp-content/u...

NEW: Nearly a year after Chicago officials turned off the city's gunshot detection system, a new analysis of Chicago crime data shows a steep drop in violent crime & homicides in the 12 South and West side neighborhoods that had ShotSpotter sensors. @wttw.bsky.social

"Contrary to Trump's rants, Illinois criminal justice reforms have been effective"‪ Thank you @repgreggjohnson.bsky.social‬ & @repguzzardi39.bsky.social‬ for speaking the truth & defending the Pretrial Fairness Act: chicago.suntimes.com/other-views/...

Next time you hear law enforcement complain that EM reforms no longer require near-total house arrest, read pp. 11-12 about Sheriff Dart's program *after* the law changed. If EM gets you harassed by cops at your job, barred from work, and fired, leading you to conclude it's easier to sell drugs...

Read our statement on the proposed defunding of #LegalServicesCorporation #Courts #LegalAid #CivilLegalServices chicagocouncil.org/chicago-coun...

Our NEW report, "The Impact of the Pretrial Fairness Act on Electronic Monitoring in Cook County," is out now! bit.ly/EM_PretrialFairnessAct

Yesterday, the number of people incarcerated in Cook County Jail rose above 6,000 people for the first time since March 2022. Learn more about how State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke is driving up pretrial jailing: endmoneybond.org/2025/07/15/c...

Our partner NPO advocacy organization @chicagoappleseed.org is having a social fundraiser at the end of September! Join them for an evening of casual fun for a good cause. $15 entry $5 to sing #KaraokeForAdvocacy Tickets at: bit.ly/karaokeforadvocacy

Join us for karaoke night on 9/30 at Gman Tavern. Sing your heart out, and connect with community, and support our work for fair, accessible courts in Chicago! 🎤✨ 🪩 $15 at the door + $5 per song 🪩 Reserve your spot at bit.ly/karaokeforadvocacy

"At New York's Varick Immigration Court, ICE agents on Wednesday began checking the documents of everyone who left." "They are indeed checking individuals off lists and attempting to detain them once they leave court." "Immigration courts should be spaces of justice — not traps." #USA #Deportation

❗ Hey, Chicago/Cook County friends, got 2 mins? ✌️ 👩🏾‍💻👨‍💻 Use @caarprnow.bsky.social's quick online form to send an important message to Cook County State's Attorney Eileen O'Neill Burke and IL Attorney General Kwame Raoul: ❌️🧊 Close the Broadview ICE detention center! ⤵️

Our statement in support of the ordinance to enhance the independence of the #InspectorGeneral is cited in this #WTTW story: news.wttw.com/2025/07/14/a... Read our statement here: chicagocouncil.org/chicago-coun...

Say Their Names. stevebrodner.substack.com

We have officially made the court assessment waiver in Cook Cty traffic court permanent! Thank you ‪@govpritzker.illinois.gov‬ for signing #SB108 into law. #CTAA We're proud to have been part of the fines & fees justice coalition that worked to pass the bill.

If Supt. Snelling wanted to, yesterday he could have told the public: 1. The death of a child is a tragedy and CPD takes this shooting investigation very seriously 2. Even with a concealed-carry permit, possessing a gun in the park is a felony, so CPD is also investigating any gun violations

Register for our annual police accountability forum. Attend in person (light lunch will be served!) or via Zoom (link forthcoming). bit.ly/CCL_PAF2025 The forum is open to everyone and #CLE credit is available for attorneys. @acslaw.bsky.social #Chicago #PoliceAccountability