Geri L. Dreiling

When Melissa Howard joined the Wal-Mart store in New Castle, Ind., in 1992, she received a blue vest, a red, white, and blue nametag, six bucks an hour, and the title of “electronics department manager.” Howard hoped to climb the corporate ladder, accept greater responsibility, and take home a fatter paycheck. So she worked diligently […]

The U.S. Constitution guarantees a criminal defendant the right to a speedy trial. In Illinois, the law defines “speedy” as 120 days from the day the defendant is charged. For almost a year, Byron Williams waited — and asked — for his day in court. Standing in Williams’ way: his lawyer, a public defender who […]

Contests for the Illinois House and Senate can be bloody and bruising, but judicial races are supposed to be kinder, gentler affairs. Lawyers who want to become judges traditionally say no more than what is listed on their résumés. They don’t tell voters how they would rule on cases. And tactics common in other types […]

Twenty years ago, critics slammed Madison County, Ill., as a “cesspool,” but they weren’t referring to its heavy industry — the refineries, chemical plants and steel mills that spewed pollution into the air and the nearby Mississippi River. Instead, they pointed to Madison County’s other big business: its court system. Critics claimed that juries in […]