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Dear Community Leaders,
Welcome to another edition of “For the People.”
It has been a very busy new year for everyone in the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office as many new laws have gone into effect. To keep everyone up to speed, the spotlight story in this newsletter will focus on the new laws in 2020, and our feature story will focus on the state's attorney's office continued efforts to increase the use of the alcohol-monitoring SCRAM CAM device. There will also be a column from Hitch, the Lake County Children’s Advocacy Center, and some "Tid-Bits" of happenings that involved our office over the last several weeks.
 If you haven’t already done so, please join the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office Facebook site at facebook.com/LCSTATESATTORNEY/. Numerous updates regarding our office can be viewed there. In addition, we will release details about important community events and news releases for the community. Overall, it's the best way to keep tabs on the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office.
I would like to congratulate Assistant Lake County State’s Attorney Lauren Walker, Detective LaKesha Wilkerson from the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, and the Lake County Children’s Advocacy Center Friends Committee for taking home awards during the Lake County Juvenile Officer’s Association celebration dinner on January 10. Walker, Wilkerson and Charlie May, board member for the Children's Advocacy Center, are pictured with me receiving their awards.
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We were honored to join with the city of Waukegan, the Waukegan Police Department, members of the Lake County State's Attorney's Office, the U.S. Department of Justice, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security, and the U.S. Attorney's Office as hosts of a forum entitled “Protecting Places of Worship” at Waukegan’s Genesee Theater on January 10. The event drew about 400 people, who came out to discuss the ways to protect their congregations and civic groups from violence. A special thank you goes out to everyone who assisted in putting the event together and those who took the time to attend the seminar.
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I want to recognize and thank Jackson May of Highland Park, who requested everyone bring a stuffed animal to his Bar Mitzvah to support the organization Zac's Zoo. Jackson and his mom, Stacey, dropped off 182 stuffed animals at the Lake County Children's Advocacy Center in February. Pictured here are Jackson May, his mom Stacey, Lake County Children's Advocacy Center Executive director Carrie Flanigan, and Investigators James Adkins and James Magna. For more information or to learn how you can help Zac's Zoo, check out their website at zacszoo.com.
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I close by saying I remain incredibly proud of the work performed by the dedicated men and women of the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office. Their undying loyalty to truth and justice makes me proud daily. I encourage us to continue to work together to ensure that Lake County remains a happy, healthy, and safe community.
Spotlight Story
New Year, New Laws
More than 250 new laws went into effect at the start of the new year, many of which affect Lake County residents. Below is a quick synopsis of some of the most discussed laws that went into effect when the calendar changed to 2020:
Legalized marijuana:
The highest profile of the new laws that went into effect is the legalization of recreational cannabis. Illinois is the 11th state to legalize marijuana, which allowed adults over 21 to legally purchase and partake.
However, people are urged to understand the law before heading to their local marijuana dispensary. Illinois residents can only possess up to 30 grams of cannabis flower, 5 grams of cannabis concentrate and 500 milligrams of THC-infused products – like edibles - at any given time. Non-Illinois residents are only allowed to possess half of those amounts. Growing marijuana plants is only allowed for medical patients and they can only have up to five plants at once.
Residents are only allowed to buy marijuana at state-licensed dispensaries and may only partake in the privacy of their own home. People who ingest marijuana anywhere else can be ticketed for public consumption. Landlords are still allowed to prohibit the use of cannabis in their properties, and employers can prohibit cannabis usage and drug test employees.
Sexual education, identity and harassment law changes:
Sex education classes must include age-appropriate discussions on the meaning of consent in 2020. The new law details what must be covered in those discussions, including the idea that consent can be withdrawn at any time and that past consent does not constitute future consent.
In addition, all single-occupancy restrooms located in public places are to be identified as non-gender specific. Also, people can no longer be removed from a jury based solely on their sexual orientation.
The Workplace Transparency Act prohibits any agreement or contract from restricting an employee from reporting allegations of unlawful conduct - including sexual harassment - while the Civil Remedies for Nonconsensual Dissemination of Private Sexual Images Act allows the victims involved in revenge porn cases to recover economic, emotional distress, and punitive damages for up to two years after an image is disseminated or a threat to disseminate an image is made.
Then, the statute of limitations has been removed for sex assault and sex abuse charges for all ages, including minors. In previous years, prosecution could only be brought within 10 years of the offense, and only if the reporting victim brought it to the attention of law enforcement within three years.
Driving laws:
State legislators have increased the penalties for violators of Scott’s Law in the wake of three Illinois State Troopers being killed in crashes in 2019. Scott’s Law requires drivers to slow down and change lanes when approaching emergency, construction and disabled vehicles on the side of the roadway. Anyone who fails to do so will be fined a minimum of $250 for the first violation, $750 for the second violation, to a maximum of $10,000.
In addition, the maximum penalty for hitting a worker in a construction zone has increased from $10,000 to $25,000, while those who disobey traffic-control devices in highway construction zone will face fines between $100 and $1,000.
Minimum Wage:
Illinois’ minimum wage increased from $8.25 to $9.25 on Jan. 1 and will increase again to $10 per hour in July. The wage will then increase annually until reaching $15 per hour in 2025.
Education:
All Illinois high schoolers with a grade point average in the top 10% of their class will now automatically be accepted to the universities of Northern Illinois, Southern Illinois, Eastern Illinois and Western Illinois, provided the students meet other criteria.
In addition, U.S. History classes must include instruction on the state of Illinois for all students in classes Kindergarten through 12th grade.
Consumer protection:
Companies that collect personal information about Illinois residents will be required to report any data breaches impacting more than 500 Illinois residents to the Illinois Attorney General’s Office with a description of the breach of security or unauthorized acquisition, the number of Illinois residents affected, and any steps the data collector has taken or plans to take relating to the incident.
In addition, Illinois will expand privacy protections for people using direct-to-consumer commercial genetic testing companies like ancestry.com or 23andMe. Genetic testing companies will be prohibited from selling data to insurance companies where it can be used to set rates. The new law will require written permission from the test taker before the results can be shared.
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A Dog's Life Featuring Mitch, Hitch and Browser
News From Hitch
It's my turn!
I finally have an opportunity to introduce myself!
So, hello! My name is Hitch, I am a Black Labrador Retriever, and I serve as a facility dog in the Therapeutic Intensive Monitoring Court. Basically, that means I meet and greet men and women who need comfort in the county's specialty courts, though my handler Assistant State's Attorney Suzanne Willett hates it when I'm referred to as a "comfort dog."
Like my buddy Mitch, I was donated to the Lake County State's Attorney's Office by Duo Dogs, Inc, a national not-for-profit organization accredited by Assistance Dogs International.
In case you're wondering, I went though a ton of training to get to where I am today. The training included a formal program at the Southwestern Illinois Correctional Center, where inmates aided me in the early training stages to be a facility dog. After I graduated from that training program, I went for my "Master's Degree" at Duo Dogs International - a rigorous week-long training session that is similar to boot camp. When it was over, I was declared a professionally certified and trained assistance dog.
I do a similar job that Mitch does at the Lake County Children's Advocacy Center, except I do it for adults. I am assigned to meet and greet people in the Nineteenth Judicial Circuit's Therapeutic Intensive Monitoring Program, which includes the Specialty Courts like Mental Health Court, Drug Court and Veterans Court. Basically, I'm there when someone needs reassurance and comfort.
In addition, I love to roam the halls and see how many people I can get to pet me and give me belly rubs. Petting me and belly rubs are my favorite treat, and I can always count on Mr. Nerheim to give me a belly rub.
That's it! I was glad to finally have a chance to speak with you! If you ever see me, feel free to stop and say hi (but, if I'm wearing my blue Duo vest, be sure you clear it with Suzanne before petting me. I have strict rules for everything I do when I'm wearing my vest.)
Thanks,
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News from
Carrie Flanigan,
Executive Director
Lake County Children’s Advocacy Center
April is Child Abuse Prevention Month
Welcome to another edition of LCCAC Corner, featuring news from the Lake County Children's Advocacy Center.
April is Child Abuse Prevention Month, and it's our time to push toward our goal of keeping every child safe and every community aware of child abuse.
The Lake County Children’s Advocacy Center is always committed to providing a safe environment for child victims of abuse. The goal is to investigate and help successfully prosecute offenders of child abuse without causing further trauma to the child. The center is dedicated to approaching victims of child abuse in a sensitive, respectful manner.
While a child is defined as anyone from birth to eighteen years of age, the Children's Advocacy Center will provide services to individuals beyond age eighteen when special circumstances (i.e. developmental disability) require special handling of a victim.
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 Lake County State's Attorney's Office to Increase Use of Technology to Address Alcohol-Related Crimes
The Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office is pushing to expand the use of an ankle monitoring device that provides 24/7 monitoring of high-risk individuals involved in alcohol-related crimes.
Lake County State’s Attorney Michael Nerheim has announced he will be advocating for increased use of the SCRAM Continuous Alcohol Monitoring, or SCRAM CAM, for offenders charged with alcohol-related crimes.
SCRAM Systems, the world’s leading provider of electronic monitoring and software solutions for the criminal justice field, produces the technology that automatically tests the wearer’s perspiration every 30 minutes for alcohol consumption. That information is recorded for court probation officers, who ensure the offender is complying with court orders regarding alcohol consumption.
Defendants with multiple DUI arrests or crashes involving alcohol consumption can be ordered to wear the devices as a condition of release on bail while awaiting trial. People also released on bail for other types of offenses in which alcohol was a factor may also be subject to monitoring, including people charged for domestic violence and assault offenses.
Consuming alcohol or removing the bracelet may result in bail forfeiture.
According to reports released by the device manufacturer, 131 people were sentenced in Lake County to use SCRAM CAM in 2019. Of the 13,307 days that people were monitored, the company reports offenders remained sober 99.5 percent of the time.
“We have seen the success rate while people are ordered to wear the SCRAM device,” Nerheim said. “The statistics clearly show people ordered to be on SCRAM CAM generally comply with their bond conditions.”
In 2016, the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office began pushing for the use of SCRAM CAM to reduce the amount of repeat DUI arrests. At that time, Lake County had the fourth highest rate in Illinois of high-risk DUI offenders and the fourth highest rate of drunk driving arrests. By implementing SCRAM CAM technology, Lake County pre-trial services can monitor high-risk offenders around the clock to ensure they aren’t consuming alcohol.
Offenders are responsible for the costs of their monitoring. Offenders ordered to wear the device are better at maintaining employment and family commitments while ensuring they aren’t drinking and endangering the public.
The Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office aims to reduce the number of offenders that continue to put the safety of the community at risk by committing alcohol-involved crimes while helping them maintain sobriety and get their lives back on track.
“When we separated offenders from alcohol, we targeted the root of the problem,” Nerheim said. “It not only saved taxpayers money by not having to house offenders in jail, it gave offenders the chance to get their lives back on track.”
To date, the technology has been used to monitor over 700,000 high-risk DUI offenders around the country and more than 12,500 people in Illinois.
“Alcohol monitoring, especially when it’s part of a larger program of supervision and treatment, can support long-term behavior change," Nerheim said. "This makes it less likely individuals will be back in court for another alcohol-related offense.”
Tid Bits
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Lake County State's Attorney Michael Nerheim made a speech during Lake County Rising on Feb. 11 at the Round Lake Beach Civic Center. The event, co-sponsored by A Safe Place, The Zacharias Sexual Abuse Center, and Nicasa Behavioral Health Services, helps raise awareness to the abuse suffered by women. The goal of the event is to demonstrate community support for women who have experienced or survived abuse. It also publicly demands an end to all forms of oppression of women. In addition, the event featured a community resource fair, survivors of abuse sharing their stories, and a high school essay contest. |
Lake County State's Attorney Michael Nerheim met with members of American Legion Post 145 of Highland Park during Highland Park's 11th Annual Martin Luther King Day of Service on Jan. 20. The event featured numerous stations where people could perform a day of service in honor of Martin Luther King. State's Attorney Nerheim wrote a letter for the troops, voted for his favorite superhero, created a care package for first responders, and created a book mark using his favorite famous quote.
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The Lake County State's Attorney's Office will participate in the Cristo Rey St. Martin’s Career Exploration on Tuesday, march 10, from 4 p.m. until about 7 p.m. at the school, 3106 Belvidere Road in Waukegan. Students attending the career fair are urged to stop by the state's attorney's booth to receive information about our office.
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 The Lake County State's Attorney's Office will participate in the "Spring Into Careers" career fair on March 11. The event will take place at Grant High School, 285 East Grand Avenue, Fox Lake. Students attending the annual fair are urged to stop by the state's attorney's booth for information about our office.
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Lake County State's Attorney
18 N. County Street, 3rd Floor
Waukegan, IL 60085
847-377-3000
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