Cook County State's Attorney's Office

We are ecstatic to welcome the 37 new Assistant State's Attorneys who were sworn into the Cook County State's Attorney's Office yesterday. These new prosecutors come from 18 esteemed law schools from across the country and share a commitment to serving the people of Cook County. They are ready to get to work, and they have already achieved something incredible: a 95% bar pass rate, well above the state average. Congratulations to the Class of 2025!

Photo credit: Eddie Jackson

On October 27, 2025, the CCSAO was pleased to welcome Erika N.L. Harold, Executive Director of the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism, to present: “Bullying in the Legal Profession: Data, Strategies, and Principles for Change.” Erika’s timely and engaging presentation provided us with valuable information on the nature of bullying in the legal profession, how it impacts us and the public we serve, and the steps we can all take to increase civility and respect in the legal profession.

Strong showing of CCSAO at the National District Attorneys Association 2025 Leadership Academy in Indianapolis. We are proud to have leaders from many different facets of our office represented – Felony Review, Child Support, Training, the Criminal Prosecutions Bureau and our Executive Team – at this important conference. The three-day course touches on recent challenges, best practices, and strategies for effective leadership in prosecution.

👏 We are pleased to share highlights from the inaugural class of a new program that offers high school, college and law students an inside look at being a prosecutor with the Cook County State's Attorney's Office.

⚖️ Our first cohort, undergraduate students from Loyola University Chicago, toured the criminal courthouse, met with a judge, observed live courtroom proceedings, and heard from First Assistant Craig Engebretson.

🌟 Our Recruitment and Trainings team are excited to grow the program to provide firsthand insight into how the CCSAO upholds the law and works to keep our community safe.

We are extremely proud to share that our newest class of Bar Takers achieved a bar passage rate of 95% — a benchmark that is significantly above the statewide average. 🎉

Please congratulate our new Assistant State’s Attorneys in training, who are well on their way to improving safety across Cook County. ⚖️

We are thrilled to have the best and brightest on our team. 🌟

As October begins, we mark the start of Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

Our prosecutors, victim specialists, investigators, and staff work tirelessly to assist survivors as they navigate the criminal justice system. These cases are extremely sensitive, and we are focused on keeping survivors safe from their abusers, connecting them with needed services, and securing justice

Please take a moment to see what events we have planned to raise awareness about this important issue ⬇️

ICYMI: Our policies cracking down on machine guns are working.

🚨 If you carry one of these weapons of war on our streets, we will seek detention and prison time, and judges are responding.

Read more in the Chicago Sun-Times ⬇️

Cook County's top prosecutor is pushing for pretrial detention for anyone charged with machine-gun possession State's Attorney Eileen O'Neill Burke's prosecutors are routinely asking judges to keep suspects in jail until trial when they've been charged with having a machine gun — mostly handguns converted into automatic weapons.

As we celebrate and recognize the rich history of and contributions by the Latino community, Assistant State's Attorney Enrique Abraham, Deputy Chief of the Criminal Prosecutions Bureau, spoke on a panel about advancing through the public sector, which was put on by the Hispanic Lawyers Association of Illinois.

The panel, part of HLAI's Latinos in the Law Symposium, also featured 3rd District State Representative Eva Dina Delgado, Secretary of the Illinois Department of Professional Regulation Mario Treto, and Cook County Public Defender Sharone Mitchell.

Please join us in observing National Hispanic Heritage Month from Sep. 15 to Oct. 15!

Today, the Chicago Tribune highlighted a deferred prosecution program for juveniles accused of nonviolent felonies and serious misdemeanors that we have been heavily involved with developing, implementing, and evaluating. Our office determines who is eligible for the program, which connects youth with no prior criminal court background with needed support services, mentoring, job training, and more. The result? Independent researcher Chapin Hall found that 144 juveniles referred to the programs overwhelmingly completed it with success. Here’s what that means:

✅ Juveniles in the program were significantly less likely to reoffend during the study period - 44% lower odds of reoffending.
✅ This program designed specifically for the juvenile space keeps communities safer.
✅ Juveniles spent less time in court, easing strains on the court system.

Read more here: https://www.chicagotribune.com/2025/09/18/juvenile-court-program-study/