Cook County to staff additional, temporary court facility during Democrat convention

CHICAGO — The Circuit Court of Cook County is preparing for the potential of an increase in cases during next month’s Democratic National Convention .

At the request of police and city officials, the court will staff an additional, temporary facility. Additionally, several dozen judges have cleared their schedules of non-essential proceedings to make themselves available.

Protests expected during the convention beginning Aug. 19 could result in mass arrests.

The former court facility on West Belmont Avenue will handle any of those cases, a spokesperson for Chief Judge Tim Evans said in a statement. Cases could also be heard at the George N. Leighton Criminal Courthouse.

“We want to make sure the police are able to focus on providing security and that the rights of arrested individuals are scrupulously respected,” Evans said in the statement.

Residents who receive jury trial summonses to serve between August 12 through August 30 will be on standby status, while the grand and special grand juries will be scheduled at the discretion of the presiding judge of the Criminal Division.

Jury trials in criminal cases pending at the Leighton Criminal Courthouse and scheduled to begin between August 12 and 30 will be held at the Third Municipal District Courthouse in Rolling Meadows if they cannot reasonably be scheduled at a later date.

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