James G. Dimeas Appears for Defendant Charged in Orland Park Murder

On Monday, James G. Dimeas, of Legal Defenders, P.C., appeared in the Bridgeview Courthouse for a bond hearing for Fadi A. Alkarim. Mr. Dimeas's client is charged with the first-degree murder of a 21 year old Orland Park man. Alkarim is a co-defendant in the case, along with 2 other defendants. The prosecutor indicated that the state may seek the death penalty against one of the other defendants. Due to the seriousness of the charges, the judge denied bail for all of the defendants. The case has been continued for a preliminary hearing to October 9, 2009 in the Bridgeview Courthouse.

Below you will find some newspaper articles about the case:

WBBM Newsradio 780.

Southtown Star.

The Chicago Sun-Times.

ABC 7 News.

For more information about the Chicago criminal defense attorneys at Legal Defenders, P.C., visit us at www.thelegaldefenders.com or call us anytime at 1-800-228-7295.

Protests Outside of Red Light Camera Offices

Yesterday, the Daily Herald reported that about 50 people protested outside the Lombard offices of the headquarters of RedSpeed, the main operated of red light cameras in the State of Illinois. The protests come after numerous media reports questioning the effectiveness of red light cameras. The Daily Herald recently reported that the vast majority of red light camera violation tickets were issued for rolling right turns on red lights, a move that is not considered to be a big cause of traffic accidents. There have also been reports detailing the political favors given in exchange for awarding contracts to companies providing this service. The Village of Schaumburg recently announced that they will not be using red light cameras because they do not substantially decrease the risk of accidents.

To read the article in the Daily Herald, click here.

For more information about the Chicago criminal defense attorneys at Legal Defenders, P.C., visit us at www.thelegaldefenders.com or call us anytime at 1-800-228-7295.

Illinois To Release 1,000 Prisoners Early

As a further sign of the difficult economic climate facing the State of Illinois, Governor Quinn has announced that he is planning on the early release of 1,000 prisoners serving time in Illinois prisons. This move is estimated to save the State of Illinois $5 million a year. The majority of those released early will be placed on supervised parole. Each of the released prisoners will be assigned a parole officer and provided drug and other rehabilitative treatment. In addition, many of the released prisoners will be fitted with electronic monitoring devices. Prison officials state that the majority of the released prisoners will be drug and property crime offenders. Only low-level, non-violent offenders will qualify for early release and only those that are in the last year of their sentence will be considered. Inmates who have been convicted of murder, sex crimes, domestic violence or those that have orders of protection pending against them will not be released early. Governor Quinn has pledged to give another $2 million to the Illinois Department of Corrections to monitor the early release of the prisoners chosen for early release. Prison officials have not released specifics about exactly how the release will occur.

Governor Quinn recently announced that the State will be laying off 1,000 prison employees.

For more information about the Chicago criminal defense attorneys at Legal Defenders, P.C., visit us at www.thelegaldefenders.com or call us anytime at 1-800-228-7295.

Governor Quinn Restores Some Funding To Probation

Today, Governor Quinn restored $16 billion in funding that had previously been cut from state probation departments. The state legislature cut funding to the Illinois Supreme Court by 56 percent. As a result, the Supreme Court cut funding to probation departments throughout the state to only 65 percent of what they received last year. The funding cuts led to claims that public safety would be jeopardized by cuts to the probation departments. Quinn's restoration of funding restores the Supreme Court's funding to about 82% of what it received last year.

For more information about the Chicago criminal defense attorneys at Legal Defenders, P.C., visit us at www.thelegaldefenders.com or call us anytime at 1-800-228-7295.

Wheaton Police Station Evacuated After Women Turn In Live Grenades

I ran into this story about the Wheaton Police station being evacuated after 2 women showed up at the station wanting to turn over a couple of live grenades they had found. The grenades were left in the trunk of their vehicle however the police evacuated the police station and called in the bomb squad who removed the grenades from the vehicles and detonated them in the street.

This is such a strange story that I just had to bring it to your attention. Imagine the officers reaction when these ladies walked into the station Here is a link to the story.

For more information about the Chicago criminal defense attorneys at Legal Defenders, P.C., visit us at www.thelegaldefenders.com or call us anytime at 1-800-228-7295.

Felony Marijuana Charges Dismissed In Rolling Meadows

The other day I was able to get the Prosecutor's office to dismiss felony Possession of Marijuana charges against my client. My client had attended The Grateful Dead concert at Allstate Arena over the summer. An undercover Village of Rosemont police officer was doing surveillance in the parking lot of the Allstate Arena. In his police reports and at the preliminary hearing, he stated that he saw my client walking around the south end of the parking lot asking people if they wanted to buy "Molly." The officer said that "Molly" is slang for ecstasy. The officer testified at the preliminary hearing that he witnessed a drug transaction. He then called for assistance and about five other officers grabbed my client, put him face down on the parking lot and placed him under arrest for dealing drugs. They searched him and found over 50 grams of marijuana. The police never recovered any ecstasy from my client.

However, when pressed on whether he witnessed a drug transaction, the officer was forced to admit that he was not sure if what he saw was a drug transaction or a lawful transaction. I filed a Motion to Quash Arrest and Suppress Evidence arguing that the police lacked probable cause to arrest my client and that all the evidence seized after his unlawful arrest should be suppressed. To his credit, the prosecutor realized that my motion had merit and voluntarily agreed to dismiss the charges against my client on the eve of the hearing on my motion.

My client had been in jail since the arrest on a substantial bond. He is already on parole until November of 2010 for a Class 1 Felony drug charge. The dismissal of the charges means that my client is set free and does not have to worry about violating his parole.

For more information about the Chicago criminal defense attorneys at Legal Defenders, P.C., visit us at www.thelegaldefenders.com or call us anytime at 1-800-228-7295.

Use Of Recent Supreme Court Cases Wins Motion

On April 21, 2009, we published an article about the Supreme Court's decision in Arizona v. Gant. The Supreme Court severely limited police officers power to search vehicles after an arrest. In Arizona v. Gant, the defendant had been pulled over for a traffic violation. The police officer determined that he did not have a license and placed him under arrest. He was handcuffed and placed in the back of the police vehicle. The officer then searched the vehicle and discovered a gun and drugs. The Supreme Court ruled that the search of the vehicle was unreasonable and ruled that the evidence seized in the search had to be suppressed. The court ruled that in order to search the vehicle the defendant had to be close enough to the vehicle as to pose a risk that he could grab a weapon out of the car or that the police had a reasonable belief that they would find evidence related to the reason that the defendant had been arrested.

Today I used this case to win a motion to suppress on an Aggravated Unlawful Use of a Weapon By a Felon charge at 26th and California. The facts of my client's case were very similar to the facts in Gant. The defendant was pulled over because his license plate light was not working. The officer asked my client for his license but he could not produce one because it had been revoked for a prior DUI. The officer testified that he placed handcuffs on my client and put him in the back seat of his squad car. There was a passenger in the front seat. A check of his name revealed an outstanding traffic warrant and he was handcuffed and placed in the back seat of the squad car as well. The officer then proceeded to search my client's vehicle finding a loaded handgun in the back seat area of his vehicle. The state argued that this search was actually an inventory search and that the officer was following Chicago Police procedure. However, the officer admitted that he did not produce an inventory report and could only state that "miscellaneous" items were retrieved from the vehicle in the inventory search.

The court found that an inventory search would be an exception but that what the officer testified to could not be deemed to be an inventory search. The officer did not produce an inventory report and could only remember that "miscellaneous" other items were found. Since the defendant and his passenger were in handcuffs in the back seat of the squad car, and the only reason for the arrest of the defendant was that he had no driver's license, the police needed a warrant to search the vehicle.

The client was facing substantial jail time if he had been convicted of this offense. He has been to the penitentiary at least three times, most recently serving 10 years for a very serious set of felonies.

For more information about the Chicago criminal defense attorneys at Legal Defenders, P.C., visit us at www.thelegaldefenders.com or call us anytime at 1-800-228-7295.

FBI Figures Show Drop In Violent Crime Rate

Today the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) released figures which reveal that the level of violent crime dropped nationally by 1.9% from 2007 to 2008. Between 2006 and 2007 the number of rapes dropped by 1.6% to the lowest figure in 20 years. Murders dropped by 3.9%, aggravated assaults by 2.5%, and robberies by 0.7%. Property crimes, which have been decreasing the last five years, decreased by 0.8%. The drop in the violent crime rate comes after an increase in the violent crime rate in 2005 by 2.5% and an increase in 2006 of 1.3%.

For more information about the Chicago criminal defense attorneys at Legal Defenders, P.C., visit us at www.thelegaldefenders.com or call us anytime at 1-800-228-7295.

Former Harvey Detective Sentenced to 3 Years

A former Village of Harvey detective was sentenced to 3 years in state prison for returning a gun seized by the police to the family of a gang member. Hollis Dorrough was convicted last month of two counts of official misconduct, perjury and unlawful sale of a firearm. In October of 2005 a convicted drug dealer was charged with threatening two Harvey police officers with a gun. The gun was seized as evidence and Dorrough secretly handed the gun back to the drug dealers father. Dorrough claimed that he had been told by Harvey's mayor, Eric Kellogg, to give the gun back to the drug dealers father. Mayor Kellogg has denied Dorrough's claims and has not been charged with any crime or official misconduct. At his trial, prosecutors were able to show that even if Dorrough's claims were true, he knew that Mayor Kellogg had no authority to order that the gun be returned.

For more information about the Chicago criminal defense attorneys at Legal Defenders, P.C., visit us at www.thelegaldefenders.com or call us anytime at 1-800-228-7295.

Police Dispatch Official Admits To Misuse Of Police Database

The former director of a company that dispatches police and fire departments in five towns in Cook and Kane County, plead guilty to misusing the police database for personal reasons. Steven R. Cordes, the former director of QuadComm, was sentenced to six months in county jail and placed on 30 months of probation in Kane County Circuit Court. QuadComm dispatches emergency calls to police agencies and fire department. He was arrested in October of 2008 after he accessed the police database to check on the boyfriend of his live in girlfriend. Kane County officials believe he accessed the Law Enforcement Agencies Data System (LEADS) on multiple occasions from 2006 to 2008 checking on at least four individuals. It is against state law to misuse LEADS. QuadComm provides dispatch services for the towns of Sleepy Hollow, East Dundee, West Dundee and South Barrington. Cordes was the director of QuadComm from 2000 to last year after his misuse of LEADS became known to his bosses.

For more information about the Chicago criminal defense attorneys at Legal Defenders, P.C., visit us at www.thelegaldefenders.com or call us anytime at 1-800-228-7295.

Chicago Increases Penalties For Gun Offenses

Today, the Chicago City Council approved a municipal ordinance that requires mandatory jail for those charged and convicted of gun offenses under the Chicago Municipal Code. The changes apply to those charged with violating the city gun ordinance and not the state gun laws. Therefore, these changes are expected to affect a small percentage of those charged with unlawful use of weapon UUW) in the City of Chicago. A first time UUW offense carries a minimum five day jail sentence, a second offense carries a minimum 15 days and a third offense carries a minimum of 30 days. In addition the fine for carrying a gun in the city will increase from $200 to $300.

The ordinance was approved without debate.

For more information about the Chicago criminal defense attorneys at Legal Defenders, P.C., visit us at www.thelegaldefenders.com or call us anytime at 1-800-228-7295.

Update on California Prison Case

Today, a panel of federal judges denied a request by the State of California to stay an order requiring that the state prisons reduce their population by 43,000 inmates in response to a lawsuit by 2 prisoners that the state's inability to provide proper and sufficient medical treatment to its prison inmates amounted to cruel and unusual punishment. In its opinion the court found that it has

"been more than patient with the state and its officials. Throughout the proceedings,

we have had considerable difficulty in determining their positions, in view of their

conflicting representations before this and other official bodies. We are persuaded

that it is not in the best interests of all concerned to act as swiftly as possible.

Further delays and obstruction will not well serve the people of the state and

will not be tolerated by this court."

California has already indicated that it intends to appeal the case to the United States Supreme Court. California is arguing that the federal government does not have the power to order that it reduce its prisoner population.

For more information about the Chicago criminal defense attorneys at Legal Defenders, P.C., visit us at www.thelegaldefenders.com or call us anytime at 1-800-228-7295.

California Taking Prisoner Case to Supreme Court

Today, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger announced that he will appeal to the United States Supreme Court a court order which will require that the State of California reduce it's prisoner population by 40,000 inmates. On August 4, 2009 we reported on the panel of federal judges ordering the State of California to reduce it's prisoner population by 27%, or about 40,000 inmates within 2 years. The decision was a result of a long running case alleging that the State of California was providing insufficient medical care and treatment to its inmates. The Court had sought other remedies in the lead up to this decision, but the State was unable to fix the problems. Finally, the panel of federal judges handed down the only decision they felt was appropriate because the State was simply unable to remedy the situation. Schwarzenegger agrees with the need to reduce the prison population but believes that the way to do it is through legislation and not by way of the courts. The issue has been complicated by the recent case of the paroled sex offender who kidnapped an 11 year old girl and held her for 18 years.

For more information about the Chicago criminal defense attorneys at Legal Defenders, P.C., visit us at www.thelegaldefenders.com or call us anytime at 1-800-228-7295.

Kane County "No Refusal" Crackdown Is Back

Just when it looked like Kane County's "No Refusal" crackdown was on the ropes comes news that it will be back for Halloween. We first reported about this program, which is targeted towards catching drunk drivers, on July 1, 2009. Kane County authorities had announced that they would be conducting a crackdown for the fourth of July weekend. Just a few weeks ago, on August 12, 2009, we reported that Kane Countydis States Attorney John Barsanti was indicating that the program may be ended because of a lack of interest from local police agencies. Since that announcement, at least eight local police agencies have contacted Barsanti's office expressing interest in participating in the program. As a result, Barsanti has announced that a "No Refusal" operation will be conducted in a yet to be disclosed location in Kane County on Halloween. Since Memorial Day, 2008, three "No Refusal" operations have been carried out only resulting in 25 arrests. It's called "No Refusal" because judges are on the scene and police have the judges sign warrants if drivers refuse to submit to a breathalyzer test. The program has been criticized by many legal observers, including this author, for being an abuse of government power.

For more information about the Chicago criminal defense attorneys at Legal Defenders, P.C., visit us at www.thelegaldefenders.com or call us anytime at 1-800-228-7295.

Is Justice Stevens About To Retire?

Speculation is starting to simmer that Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens is about to retire. The speculation is caused by the fact that Justice Stevens has hired fewer law clerks than usual. Court observers believe that this may be the first sign that he is about to retire. The same thing happened earlier this year when Justice David Souter retired. Just before his announcement, court observers were stating that his lack of hiring law clerks was a sign that he was going to retire. Justice Stevens is 89 years old. He joined the court in 1975 when he was appointed by Republican President Gerald Ford. He is generally considered to be the most liberal justice on the court He has served 33 years and 8 months on the court, the seventh longest serving justice in history. He is the second oldest Supreme Court Justice behind Oliver Wendell Holmes. If he retires, it would give President Barack Obama his second appointment to the Supreme Court.

Court observers note that by this time of the year, Justice Stevens would normally have hired 4 law clerks. However, he has only hired 1. Former law clerks of Justice Stevens say that he ordinarily hires all his law clerks at one time. Justice Stevens has refused to say whether he intends to resign. We will keep an eye out for any developments.

For more information about the Chicago criminal defense attorneys at Legal Defenders, P.C., visit us at www.thelegaldefenders.com or call us anytime at 1-800-228-7295.