Weve seen the gangs change and shift, Lausch told the Tribune in an interview in 2021. In addition to ruling on cases appealed from the lower courts, the Supreme Court appoints judges to fill vacancies, creates rules that courts must follow, and oversees attorney licensing and discipline. Raouls goal isnt to usurp the work of federal prosecutors, who have ably gone after a vast array of public officials on corruption charges, most notably Michael Madigan. Read the full editorial here. The public has demanded urgency and new approaches from everyone involved in trying to stop the killings. Illinois is staring down many important issues, including the states support for abortion, the ongoing instability of state pensions, a looming recession, the lingering impact of the COVID-19 crisis and the perennial issue of violent crime, an especially potent concern in the larger cities but with statewide impact. (Phil Velasquez, Chicago Tribune). Matt Foley, the pastor of St. Gall Church,led the procession to the scene Thursday morning, carrying the Blessed Sacrament while a crowd of mourners followed him to pay respects and sanctify the ground where Vasquez-Lasso was fatally shot. Lauschs last day in office will be March 11. And if that piece of Duckworths remarkable biography was not daunting enough, she was the first woman with a disability to be elected to Congress, and then became the first U.S. senator to give birth while in office, following the birth of her second daughter, Maile, in 2018. The candidates also discuss whether police misconductis systemic or the result of a few bad apples. I was exhausted., Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. The McDonald case gave Alvarez an opportunity to display sound judgment. WTTW's 2020 Voter Guide is your comprehensive library of resources for the General Election on November 3. He is well respected in the legal community, and we believe he would be able to recruit and retain skilled prosecutors while developing a relationship with the police that strikes the appropriate balance between partnership and accountability. Her critics may try to blame her for that instability, but she didnt fire the police commissioners. Foxx got where she is with strong help from Preckwinkle and the county Democratic organization. Sept. 13, 2016. It will take a change in state law to make that happen, but Raoul says his team has made recommendations to the General Assemblys Joint Commission on Ethics and Lobbying Reform to broaden the AGs authority over corruption cases, as well as to ramp up the powers of the Legislative Inspector Generals Office. Ask anyone who's ever worked near the top of the state's attorney's office. TAKE THIS WITH YOU to the voting booth. Copyright 2023 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. Paul Vallas touted his first endorsement Thursday since winning the initial round of voting in the Chicago mayoral election: that of longtime former Illinois Secretary of State Jesse White. Yet she hasn't adequately explained why she didn't charge the officer who shot McDonald until 13 months after the killing even though she says she had decided some time earlier to accuse him of first-degree murder. David Shestokas gets our endorsement for Illinois Attorney General. If the treasurer is Illinois primary investment manager, the comptroller is the states main bill payer, with control over Springfields checking account. Foxx talks eagerly and easily about police misconduct cases and whether too many people are in prison. Heres the full list of those answers. The question he asks repeatedly do you feel safer than you did three years ago? That includes the office of Illinois attorney general. It makes more sense for voters to try and figure out which candidate will best improve this most customer-service oriented of public offices. At the same time, we have to acknowledge that she did not have the evidence to sustain the heavy charges she brought against the officers in the Gray case; her assertion that she would do nothing differently if given the chance is simply bizarre given the trials outcomes. Indictments stemming from the probe are expected soon, his office said. U.S. Attorney John Lausch submitted his formal resignation Wednesday stating hell be leaving his high-profile post as Chicagos top federal prosecutor later this month. Vasquez-Lassos widow was on hand and a few representatives from churches said prayers and spoke during the brief ceremony. Here are the Chicago Tribune Editorial Boards 2022 endorsements for the Nov. 8 elections. We want a state's attorney who'll focus on police misconduct, fairness to defendants and incarceration rates of the guilty. Chicago Tribune; The Baltimore Sun; The Morning Call of Pa. Daily Press of Va. Of all the Republicans on the Illinois ballot in the 2022 election cycle, Kathy Salvi, an attorney from Mundelein, surely has the hardest job. Here are our choices for contested races in the court's 15 subcircuits. Paul Vallas and Brandon Johnson will meet in a runoff to be the next mayor of Chicago after voters on Tuesday denied incumbent Lori Lightfoot a second term, issuing a rebuke to a leader who made history as head of the nation's third-largest city.. Vallas, a former schools CEO backed by the police union, and Johnson, a Cook County commissioner endorsed by the Chicago Teachers Union, advanced . Elections are opportunities to evaluate the needs of the times and of the citizens who write their public servants' paychecks. He knows Baltimore judges and juries. She didnt tell Darryl De Sousa not to file his taxes. The incumbent, Marilyn Mosby, has made a strong defense of her record, and we believe that it has merit in some important respects. Weve got to be more aggressive about working with the U.S. attorneys office to bypass the states attorneys office when the states attorney whoever the states attorney is is refusing to charge, Vallas said. First, she has been endorsed by her former boss, Preckwinkle, and the county Democratic organization. I was exhausted., Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. ]. We endorse William Tong as attorney general. He once griped in a Facebook post about an episode at a basketball game in which students struggled to give him correct change at a concession stand, the Tribune reported last month. Former Illinois governor Pat Quinn also endorsedKim Foxx in the race for States Attorney on Sunday. Disclaimer | Mosser, who is a Democrat, will formally announce her candidacy during an. But not his teammates. Kim, who ran unsuccessfully for attorney general in 2010 and then as gubernatorial candidate Dan Rutherford's lieutenant governor running mate in their losing primary race in 2014 . Mary Jane Theis Infonotes YES NO The loss of some experienced prosecutors from the office during her term is troubling, and so is the fact that she has not even acknowledged the strained relationship between her office and the police department, much less tried to mend it. The Tribune advocates for personal liberty, opportunity and enterprise, for free markets, free will and freedom of expression. Today we endorse Kim Foxx for the same good reasons, and with the same two concerns, as we did before the primary. Read candidate questionnaires and see other endorsements atchicagotribune.com/candidates. Democratic candidate for Cook County state's attorney Kim Foxx and Republican candidate Christopher Pfannkuche give their closing statements to the Chicago Tribune Editorial Board on Sept. 13, 2016. chicago tribune state's attorney endorsementgetting married in tanzania. Signs promote candidates for office in downtown Waukegan. He was nominated by Trump after Durbin and Duckworth aided the White House in the search. U.S. Attorney John Lausch, center, prepares to speak to reporters on Sept. 14, 2022, at the Dirksen U.S. But the top job of state's attorney involves many other skills: judgment about law enforcement priorities and conduct; frank and comfortable communication with the public; administration of a big and vital office that, like all of county government, will have to get smaller as pension costs crush budgets. Coziness invites intrusion from above in matters of patronage, policy and principle. Submit a letter, of no more than 400 words, to the editor here or email letters@chicagotribune.com. Chicago Tribune editors' top story picks, delivered to your inbox each afternoon. At this time in this county, Foxx is best suited to be that voice. Alvarez, who has worked in the office for nearly three decades, was previously endorsed by the Tribune in 2008 and 2012. A slate of incumbents will retain their seats on the Township High School District 214 board following the April 6 election. Read the full editorial here. "We are proud to present this diverse, accomplished slate of candidates as we ramp up for campaign season as a strong, united party organization," said Cook County Democratic Party Chairwoman Toni Preckwinkle. Over the last two years, drivers heading north on Elston Avenue in Chicago, to cite one example, could see a snaking line of freezing Chicagoans, just trying to make it inside to get their plates renewed. Today, the Cook County Democratic Party presented its recommendations for statewide, countywide and judicial races in the 2022 primary. Officers located the car later that evening and tried to make a stop, the report said, but the driver fled. Sept. 13, 2016. Since then, he has managed this office skillfully, making sound investments for the states portfolio that have earned taxpayers more than $1 billion. We will never forget his selflessness and dedication as we continue to wrap our arms around his family and loved ones. Pfannkuche would need a No. A nominee of Republican President Donald Trump, Lausch was originally asked by the incoming Biden administration to step down from his post in 2021 along with other Trump holdovers. From policing to prosecution to trial to incarceration to parole, citizens are demanding better of their criminal justice system. Preceding him are four former Senate Democratic colleagues, Thomas Cullerton, Terry Link, Annazette Collins and Martin Sandoval (who died in 2020); a former GOP state senator, Sam McCann; former House Speaker and Democratic kingmaker Michael Madigan; and onetime Democratic state Reps. Luis Arroyo and Eddie Acevedo. (Chicago Tribune). A defensive stalwart, Oswego Easts Tyler Jasek surprises Joliet West. We endorse a no vote. Privacy | 79th District - Lindsay Parkhurst (R) 81st District - David Olsen (R) 82nd District - Jim Durkin (R) 84th District - Stephanie Kifowit (D) 86th District - no endorsement. For years, we have argued candidates running for state attorney general should carve out a bigger role in tackling corruption in Illinois politics. Choosing a new Cook County state's attorney in normal times, you might vote for a candidate who's had a hand in thousands of criminal prosecutions. Now, however, he tells us he is working to expand the attorney generals jurisdiction over public corruption cases. Join the discussion on Twitter @chitribopinions and on Facebook. They are my family, and Im their family as well, Cuellar said. Alvarez's wordy non-answers to that question did nothing to quash the impression that she slow-walked this case, hoping for a joint news conference with the U.S. attorney when he finished his (still-unfinished) probe. Our second concern has been whether Foxx wants to be a crime-buster or public defender (actually an appointed post). Officers including Vasquez-Lasso encountered someone who was chasing a woman down the street with a gun, Chicago police Superintendent David Brown said late Wednesday. An early voting location at the Loop Super Site on June 23, 2022. Read the full editorial here. In addition to the public corruption probes, Lausch has earned a reputation for going after Chicagos street gangs, which hed done previously as an assistant U.S. attorney under Fitzgerald. The Chicago Tribune editorial board made their long-awaited endorsement in the upcoming mayoral election on Friday, backing former Chicago Public Schools CEO Paul Vallas for the city's top job. We think Foxx, by contrast, in time would rebuild the public's trust, the editorial board wrote. We'll again note that while taking criminals off the streets and standing up for crime victims aren't the entirety of this job, those are the reasons this job exists. Lausch was sworn in as U.S. attorney on Nov. 22, 2017, two weeks after being confirmed by unanimous voice vote in the Senate. Incumbent Democrat Michael Frerichs has had this job since 2015. Read the full editorial here. When she debated Pfannkuche before the Tribune Editorial Board, Foxx appeared more focused than she was in her primary campaign on the horrific killings by the hundreds in poor Chicago neighborhoods each year. COOK COUNTY CIRCUIT- CALLAHAN, JR. "The state's attorney should be the voice of the community," he said in their debate. During a debate at the Chicago Tribune Editorial Board, Democratic candidate for Cook County state's attorney Kim Foxx and Republican candidate Christopher Pfannkuche address how the. Beyond a polite hello in the elevator, prosecutors should be fiercely independent of politicians, especially those who sign off on their budget. CHICAGO Cook County state's attorney Kim Foxx issued a statement Thursday addressing the criminal history of the 18-year-old suspected of killing Officer Andres Vasquez-Lasso on Wednesday. He also sued Pritzker after the governor, responding to a question at a news conference about DeVores legal challenges to his pandemic mandates, called DeVore a grifter. DeVore dropped the lawsuit in March, as he mounted his primary campaign for attorney general. We believe Toni Preckwinkle has been an effective fiscal steward of Cook County, overall, and a competent manager in the massive countys various areas of jurisdiction, from corrections to transportation to public health. On Nov. 8, Illinois voters will elect their governor, junior U.S. senator, two Illinois Supreme Court justices, all 17 of Illinois representatives in the U.S. Congress, every state senator and state representative in the General Assembly, and county and judicial offices throughout the state. It's a tall mountain to climb. But the top job of state's attorney involves many other skills: judgment about law enforcement priorities and conduct; frank and comfortable communication with the public; administration of a big and vital office that, like all of county government, will have to get smaller as pension costs crush budgets.. Following Mass, the Rev. I know the commander there, and I know some of the officers, so I went over and offered my services and paid (my) respects.. We believe Ivan Bates is that person. Foxx, Alvarez and former state and federal prosecutor Donna More face off in the March 15 Democratic primary. Preceding him are four former Senate Democratic colleagues, Thomas Cullerton, Terry Link, Annazette Collins and Martin Sandoval (who died in 2020); a former GOP state senator, Sam McCann; former House Speaker and Democratic kingmaker Michael Madigan; and onetime Democratic state Reps. Luis Arroyo and Eddie Acevedo. As the candidates for Cook County state's attorney debated the handling of the Laquan McDonald case before the Chicago Tribune Editorial Board on Feb. 4, 2016, incumbent Anita Alvarez defended her investigation, saying, "I don't believe any mistakes were made." If nothing else, that list should serve as a sobering reminder that dismantling the culture of corruption staining Illinois politics must be a top priority for prosecutors at every echelon of government. That's the case Republican Christopher Pfannkuche (pronounced fon-COOK) makes for electing him chief prosecutor. We don't regret those endorsements.