McHenry Prosecutor Tough Stance Stretching County Resources

There's a report in today's Daily Herald that court resources in McHenry County are being stretched due to the drastic increase in jury trials. In 2004, there was only a total of 48 juries. In 2007 that number went up to 97, and in 2008 that number increased 139. There could be several reasons for this such as the increased in county population, changing state laws that affect the number of felonies and DUI offenses. But the article points out that many local criminal defense attorneys point to the hard line stance taken by McHenry County State's Attorney, Louis Bianchi. Local attorneys are reporting that the prosecutor's office is making ridiculous offers thereby leaving defendants no choice but to go to trial. Bianchi readily admits that his policies are leading to more trials but makes no excuse for his stance. However, the county only has a limited number of judges, courtrooms and support personnel to deal with this increase in trials. And with the current budget problems facing state and local governments, it is unlikely that there will be any additional funding to deal with this problem.

Bianchi staunchly defends his policies and believes that the trial experience will benefit his assistants as they gain experience from jury trials.

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