“One of the biggest challenges was the rapid pace at which cases were called and resolved, often with little explanation for those unfamiliar with legal terminology or procedure.” www.chicagoappleseed.org/2025/08/27/n... via @chicagoappleseed.org #housing+ #urbanism+ #urbanism

Next week! Two of my favorite things: systemic reform @chicagoappleseed.org and nonsense @popupkaraoke.com ! Get your tickets here: bit.ly/karaokeforadvocacy

What’s at stake in the race for Chief Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County? Our Co-Executive Directors spoke to @InjusticeWatch about what they're keeping an eye on. Read the article 👉

#FlashbackFriday—Last November, Research Manager Austin Segal and doctoral student, Alexa Cinque, presented at the American Society of Criminology Annual Meeting about our research on the Restorative Justice Community Courts (RJCCs) in Cook County. 📌 www.chicagoappleseed.org/2024/02/22/r...

Forfeiture is an "avalanche of petty theft" — for many property owners, hiring a lawyer to fight it is worth more than the cash/items seized, so the state keeps their property. chicago.suntimes.com/columnists/2...

Looks like a great event! We’ll definitely be attending :)

This Thursday, September 4 @ 1:00 pm CT, our Senior Attorney, Elizabeth Monkus, will be speaking on this webinar about the unlawful federal takeover of the city and what it means for us here in Chicago. Register at bit.ly/DCTakeover_Appleseed

NEW: @chicagoappleseed.org dropped a new eviction court-watching report! We haven't had one in a WHILE. Findings include: -most tenants are Black or Brown women/feminine-presenting people w/out lawyers -the court is regularly failing to provide interpreters www.chicagoappleseed.org/2025/08/27/n...

We sent our court-watchers to observe Cook County eviction courts! Here's what they found: (1/6)

Interested in joining our fight for #FairCourts and #AccessibleJustice? Visit 🔗chicagoappleseed.org/GET-INVOLVED to learn more.

Illinois is defending the Pretrial Fairness Act. We will not bow down to Trump. Read our statement on the President's attack on the end of money bail in Illinois: endmoneybond.org/2025/08/25/i...

Join us for karaoke night to benefit Chicago Appleseed on September 30th at Gman Tavern. Sing your heart out, and connect with community, and support fair, accessible courts in Chicago! 🎤✨ 🪩 Reserve your spot go to bit.ly/karaokeforadvocacy 🎶 #RaiseYourVoice for advocacy!

State’s Attorney O’Neill Burke's decision to scrap her office’s do-not-call/disclosure lists is seriously concerning and increases the likelihood of wrongful convictions—especially here in #Chicago (known as the wrongful conviction capital of the US). 📌 bit.ly/disclosure-rollback

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...

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

The Cook County Jail population has been increasing, and we have a few ideas as to why. Read our new blog post to learn more:

Even with the drop in stops, Chicago police still made over 800 stops per day in 2024, mostly for minor issues like expired registration. These stops rarely lead to citations (8.6%) or arrests (4.5%) and don’t improve public safety. www.wbez.org/data/2025/07...

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

Our country is facing unprecedented times, but the local work doesn't stop...and neither do we, but we need your support. Please consider making a donation to help us reduce the harms of the legal system at chicagoappleseed.org/donate. We're all in this together.

Read our new blog post about the arbitrary difference between simple and aggravated gun possession charges in Illinois.

Everyone, wish Elizabeth a happy birthday! ✨💚✨ Elizabeth is our Senior Attorney & #CivilCourts Project Director. She to Chicago Appleseed in 2010 and currently focuses on domestic relations and judicial elections in her program work. Happy birthday, Elizabeth!

"The Chicago Police Department made 45% fewer traffic stops in 2024, but Black and Latino drivers were four times more likely than white drivers to be pulled over." www.wbez.org/data/2025/07...

Times are tough but we're still here doing our best to create systemic change in the Cook County legal system. Will you support us? 🔗bit.ly/supportChicagoAppleseed

You can help us better understand why the Cook County Jail population has been increasing by court-watching! Request more info at www.chicagoappleseed.org/i-want-to-co...

Last chance! Don't forget to get your tickets for our 55th anniversary party happening this Thursday, June 12th. 📌 RSVP to celebrate with us at chicagoappleseed.org/rsvp 📌 Support the #FundForJustice chicagoappleseed.org/forms/donate-at-studio-55

🎉 AMAZING NEWS! 🎉 Illinois has officially passed the #FAIRAct, which will revolutionize public defense in Illinois. Read on to learn how! (1/6)

"Queer people have long been visionaries of worlds based in mutual care and autonomy rather than state violence and fear. At Chicago Appleseed, we’re continuing this legacy." - Research Manager & Jill DuPont Memorial Fellow, Austin Segal Support us this Pride at chicagoappleseed.org/donate <3

Don't miss our biggest night of the year: the summer social! This year, we're celebrating our 55th (!) anniversary with a 70's theme: join us for "Studio 55" where we'll head back to the year the Fund for Justice was founded. Get your tickets at chicagoappleseed.org/tickets today!

What do J.Lo, Jay Z, and the #FundForJustice have in common? We're all 55 years old 😎 Join us on June 12th at Greenhouse Loft from 6-9PM for "Studio 55," celebrating 55 years of the Fund for Justice! Get your tickets today at chicagoappleseed.org/tickets 🪩

🚨 MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD 🚨 Go to bit.ly/ProtectSuccessAct to tell your legislators to save the Pretrial Success Act, which was created to help expand access to vital community services for people awaiting trial after IL became the first state in the country to #EndMoneyBond.

See our pinned post - we agree. SA Burke must reverse her new policy immediately and reinstate attorney review for felony charges.

This morning we joined 130+ organizations and community leaders to send an open letter to Cook County State's Attorney Eileen O'Neill Burke, urging urging her to end the Felony Review Bypass Program in the 5th and 7th CPD Districts. 1/

We support the FAIR Act (HB3363) because Illinois is one of only 5 states without a statewide public defense system. Do you? The FAIR Act will help better distribute funding to county public defenders based on need, collect data, and increase autonomy of local public defenders.

Join us for food, games, and prizes to celebrate the 55th anniversary of the #FundForJustice on Thursday, June 12th. 📌 Get your tickets at secure.chicagoappleseed.org/forms/2025-s... 📌 Support our future work by becoming a sponsor at secure.chicagoappleseed.org/forms/2025-s...

🎟️ Got your tickets yet? Meet us at Greenhouse Loft on June 12 at 6pm for Studio 55: Celebrating 55 years of the Fund for Justice! We'll head back to the 70's to compare our history with our most pressing projects right now. Get tickets at www.chicagoappleseed.org/tickets.

Thank you for attending!

The Cook County State's Attorney's Office (CCSAO) is piloting a program that bypasses felony review for most gun possession cases. Here's what you need to know about it! (1/7)

As Sheriff Dart drags his feet about #EM reform, remember that he also opposed the #PFA and advocated for conditions so restrictive, they "amounted to a human rights crisis” according to Naomi Johnson, our Co-Executive Director. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Read more: buff.ly/42rDUJl

We need your help to monitor the implementation of the Pretrial Fairness Act 👀 👉 Sign up for a court-watcher training session in April or May at www.chicagoappleseed.org/pretrial-fai...!

A great read by the @nytimes about the firearm harm reduction work put into practice by our partners at Stick Talk: www.nytimes.com/2025/03/17/u...

We strongly oppose State's Attorney Burke's new policy related to electronic monitoring. Read this thread to learn why! (1/5)

We need YOUR help to monitor the implementation of the Pretrial Fairness Act! Sign up for a training session in April or May at chicagoappleseed.org/pretrial-fairness-court-watching.

At last, Cook County's two electronic monitoring (EM) programs—known as the Sheriff's program and the Chief Judge's program—are being unified as one program managed by the Office of the Chief Judge. Read what we hope will happen with this transition! (1/6)

Starting tomorrow, Cook County will begin the transition to "run all electronic monitoring through the court system, merging parallel programs that [were] previously operated separately" under the Sheriff and the courts. 1/ www.chicagotribune.com/2025/03/30/c...

We're taking it #BackToTheSeventies ✨🕺🪩 on Thursday, June 12th, to celebrate 55th anniversary of our founding! The Fund for Justice (which became Chicago Appleseed in 1997) was founded in 1970 by @ChiCouncilLaw to research systemic issues in the Cook County courts.

The Cook County State’s Attorney has instructed prosecutors to stop diverting people with gun possession charges to Restorative Justice Community Courts, which currently make up 82.8% of their caseload. news.wttw.com/2025/02/17/c...

Join us this Thursday, 6:30PM, at the DuSable Museum for the final CCPSA hearing on traffic stops! We've been advocating with @Free2movechi to end to pretextual stops, limit stops for low-level offenses, and end to suspicion-less consent searches.

A great read by the @nytimes.com about the firearm harm reduction work put into practice by our partners at Stick Talk: www.nytimes.com/2025/03/17/u...

Yesterday, our partners at @chicagoappleseed.org & Trinity UCC testified at the Cook County Board of Commissioners Criminal Justice Committee meeting in support of sunsetting the Sheriff's electronic monitoring program. We're excited to share that the transition is still on track for next month!

Thank you to @wttw.bsky.social for reporting on this! Read our response to the news at www.chicagoappleseed.org/2025/02/26/ignoring-community-voices-firearm-possession-excluded-from-rjccs/