Now's a good time for Illinois residents to take advantage of a unique right we have to be removed from Clearview's database. Scroll down to IL opt-out here: www.clearview.ai/privacy-and-...

“I don’t even think it’s close,” said Cook County Circuit Court Judge Kenneth Wadas during the 2.5 hour long criminal trial of a former youth jail employee accused of throwing a 15-year-old handcuffed boy to the ground, leaving him unconscious. www.injusticewatch.org/juvenile-cou...

Can't wait to read more about what happened. I can't say I'm surprised though, Wadas has a reputation as a very pro law enforcement judge. Former marine who ran the narcotics unit when Richie Daley was the SAO in the 80s. In 2020 IW found him among the most reversed on appeal at 26th street.

Update: Due to a scheduling issue, trial was postponed to tomorrow at 10 am. Keep checking back for updates. @injusticewatch.org

Given all you hear about child abuse at the Cook County juvenile detention center it's shocking that we're seeing the first criminal trial of a guard for allegedly assaulting a kid in over a decade. Great reporting from my colleague @kellygarcia.bsky.social www.injusticewatch.org/juvenile-cou...

Great and necessary reporting from @rebeccaburns.bsky.social about the landlord and property manager of the South Shore building that got raided inthesetimes.com/article/evic...

Federal agents arrested 11 rideshare drivers at O'Hare Saturday, the second time agents have targeted workers who are the "backbone" of the city's transportation network, an advocacy group said. blockclubchicago.org/2025/10/19/b...

Some perspective on how much we've all acquiesced to gerontocracy: in 1978 (when there was mandatory judicial retirement at 75 in IL) the first chief judge of cook county, a big Dem machine boss, lost his retention election. His age (77) was considered "the key factor in voter rejection"

It's a great day to take our short survey and be entered to win $100 and a custom portrait by our artist Verónica Martinez!

Happy Indigenous People's Day from an Italian heritage street festival in Chicago's Viagra triangle where, yes, Bob Fioretti, dressed in a "Dignitary" sash, is collecting signatures for yet another run for elected office

If you love @injusticewatch.org please take a few minutes to complete this survey! It'll help us shape our work and make sure we're bringing you what you need. There's a chance to win $100 + a custom portrait by our artist Verónica Martinez every week for the next month!

CPD rehired Forberg as a criminal intelligence research specialist after he retired as a detective. His sometimes-partner, John Foster, remains a commander of detectives. Supt. Larry Snelling declined to discuss those facts. Forberg also quit a small suburban department after I asked about the job.

My colleague @danhinkel.bsky.social found that not a single person has been exonerated with the help of the "conviction integrity unit" under the new Cook County State's Attorney

Senior reporter Maya Dukmasova's recent investigation of a UIC crime lab involved submitting more than 45 FOIA request, reviewing more than 8k pages of documents, and interviewing more than 50 people. If you've got questions or want to learn more about her process, join us on Reddit! buff.ly/BnaI0DC

New this morning: a Cook County judge with a history of alleged inappropriate physical conduct with colleagues has been reassigned after a clerk accused her of battery www.injusticewatch.org/judges/judic...

Charles Beach, 55, was elected Cook County chief judge this evening, defeating 24-year incumbent Timothy Evans. He’ll take over control over a vast court bureaucracy as well as judicial assignments when his term starts Dec. 1. Story by @mdoukmas.bsky.social. www.injusticewatch.org/judges/court...

This will have strong political implications for the Cook County juvenile detention center, which falls under the jurisdiction of the Chief Judge. The current superintendent was appointed by Evans in 2015 and, to the bewilderment of many, kept around despite persistent concerns about his leadership.

BEAKING NEWS: COOK COUNTY HAS A NEW CHIEF JUDGE - Charles Beach

I'm on the 17th floor of the Daley Center where Cook County's circuit judges are gathering for the secret conclave style election of their Chief Judge. As one irate litigant just commented, coming out hot from a nearby hearing: "It's a goofy ass fucking place!" Follow along for updates!

The next JTDC Advisory Board is on Oct. 7, same time and place. Thanks for following along. Please stay tuned to the secret election for Chief Judge happening in just a few... here's a great piece on what to expect from my colleague @mdoukmas.bsky.social www.injusticewatch.org/judges/court...

Congratulations to @mdoukmas.bsky.social of @injusticewatch.org on winning the September Sidney for her innovative and engaging exposé of forensic junk science in Chicago:

Will the man who's led the country's second largest court system for a quarter century be once again chosen for the post on Wednesday? We'll see... It's the most contested election for the post since 2001.

It's been a pleasure to be involved in this important project!! Huge congrats to @amyqin.bsky.social @estheryjkang.bsky.social and the rest of the @wbez.org team and our collaborators at @miurbanchicago.bsky.social The work @writeralejandra.bsky.social and I began with #TheTenantTrap continues!

Ok @kellygarcia.bsky.social is back on the "DOES THIS COOK COUNTY OFFICIAL EVEN LIVE IN COOK COUNTY?!" beat www.injusticewatch.org/juvenile-cou...

I'm not buying shit from a brand having a "summer's over sale"

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...

Wow!

📻 Tune in to WVON 1690AM tomorrow morning at 9:30 a.m. to hear senior reporter Maya Dukmasova discussing her investigation of a rogue crime lab at the University of Illinois Chicago.

To me the point of this story wasn't just to give an account of this one lab. There are real tangible changes our state can make to our forensic science oversight system and there needs to be political will to take on the Illinois State Police to make them. www.injusticewatch.org/project/fore...

Looking for your Sunday read? Take a journey into the wild world of forensic science labs and the terrifying result of a near total lack of oversight over what's happening in this corner of the criminal legal system www.injusticewatch.org/project/fore...

If you missed me live on @abc7.bsky.social this morning check out the segment here abc7chicago.com/post/new-fal...

📺 Tune in to ABC 7 Chicago tomorrow (Saturday) around 8:45 a.m. to hear senior reporter Maya Dukmasova discussing her latest investigation.

What happens when there is no meaningful oversight of crime labs? In Illinois, innocent people are convicted of driving high. A really important investigative deep dive by @mdoukmas.bsky.social www.injusticewatch.org/project/fore...

There are so many wtf moments in this piece I just COULD NOT put it down. Don't tell my boss I've been reading all morning. Great investigation by my colleague @mdoukmas.bsky.social www.injusticewatch.org/project/fore...

My latest investigation! A story about some wild things that happened at a UIC forensics lab and how inadequate crime lab oversight is in our state. In the course of reporting I: -filed 45+ FOIA requests -did 100+ interviews -reviewed 8000+ pages of records www.injusticewatch.org/project/fore...

Valentina Galvis’s unlawful detention in a Chicago area hotel room while ICE claimed she was 700 miles away in DC is chilling. (1/2)

A Chicago woman went to immigration court. Her case was dismissed; she and her infant were taken by federal agents who turned her over to contractor MVM. They spent five days confined at the Sonesta O'Hare hotel without communication to the outside world. My first byline at @injusticewatch.org:

The cast of Reno 911 is still an assembly of the best comedic talent in America

Reminiscing about old Twitter. I used to post stuff about how the sausage is made in investigative reporting. Is that something that interests people? What sorts of questions do you have?

So proud of my colleagues, esp. @writeralejandra.bsky.social and @mdoukmas.bsky.social, for this recognition of their work. Congrats to all the finalists!

There's a record low number of countrywide judicial vacancies in the 2026 election cycle. Last week the Cook County Democrats, in typical tribal fashion, doled out their endorsements #CheckYourJudges (link fixed) www.injusticewatch.org/judges/judic...

If you're talking about lack of media messaging WITHOUT taking into account the crisis in journalism, especially local journalists in smaller areas, then you're not really looking at the whole picture. www.niemanlab.org/2025/07/new-...

Greetings from City Hall, where Mayor Brandon Johnson begins his news conference in full-on campaign mode, focusing on articles showcasing his opponents’ efforts by highlighting this article by @tonia.thetriibe.com for @thetriibe.com: thetriibe.com/2025/06/whos...

Psyched to share that an online version of our workshop on how to use public databases to research Chicago building conditions and property ownership is live! There's a step by step guide to all the tools we covered at our events and instructional videos! www.injusticewatch.org/civil-courts...

“We have yet to see any tenant win a retaliation lawsuit or come out with any kind of recognition of that retaliation.”   www.injusticewatch.org/civil-courts... By @injusticewatch.org's @writeralejandra.bsky.social #housing+ #urbanism+ #urbanism

Mind-blowing from @writeralejandra.bsky.social: tenants in substandard apts assert their legal rights, landlord retaliates, tenants sue over retaliation, landlord files evictions anyway. Then, to drop the evictions, landlord requires tenants to sign NDAs. www.injusticewatch.org/civil-courts...

I'm not going to dignify that garbage Sun Times story about the alleged teen carjackers with a link but it if anyone is teaching journalism these days and needs examples of what media copaganda looks like there's your story. Unserious, racist, and lazy. What an embarrassment.

and i say this as someone who is and has been the target of a lot of internet criticism/abuse/attacks! get over it! no one forced you to engage in public life!

Based on @cb-312.bsky.social's investigation into how IL property owners who fall behind on taxes lose their homes, @injusticewatch.org is fundraising for mailing a resource guide to 811 seniors at imminent risk. We're $927.50 away from reaching everyone on the list! www.injusticewatch.org/donate/

Of 14,777 unique articles on the NYT's homepage over the 310 days from 1/1/24 to Election Day, 293 articles–almost one a day–focused on Biden’s age compared with just 27 articles focused on Project 2025, a ratio of 10.9 to one mediabiasdetector.seas.upenn.edu/blog/new-yor...