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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
CALLING FOR COOK COUNTY PUBLIC SAFETY STAKEHOLDERS TO WORK TOGETHER ON A COURT UTILIZATION STUDY
WHEREAS, based on Clerk of the Circuit Court for Cook County data for 2016 and 2017, there has been a 47.8% decline in new court cases over the last 10 years across all case types. More specifically, there has been a 35.4% decline in civil cases, a 56.8% decline in criminal cases, and a 49.5% decline in traffic cases; and
WHEREAS, this continued decline in case volume suggests that the Circuit Court of Cook County's 333 courtrooms, originally built to handle the large case volume of the 1970s and 1980s, may currently have excess capacity; and
WHEREAS, the Cook County Circuit Court Branch Court locations are in some of the poorest physical conditions of any Cook County court houses, needing $25.3 million in repairs over the next 10 years; and
WHEREAS, the Cook County Criminal Justice Stakeholders are working continuously and cooperatively to safely reduce the financial burden of operating the criminal justice system upon Cook County taxpayers; and
WHEREAS, effective reforms may be instituted only with the support of comprehensive data, accessible to and acceptable to all of the stakeholders; and
WHEREAS, in light of the need for functional and safe courthouses for the efficient operations of the Cook County Circuit Court System as well the aging facilities, there is a need to determine what resources will be needed in the future and what alternatives are available to secure those resources; and
WHEREAS, a courtroom utilization study should be performed so that the use of the Cook County Circuit Court courtrooms (including Branch Courts and District Court Houses) may be maximized, with court calls correctly sized and scheduled based on a complete understanding of when, for how long and in what ways, courtrooms are used; and
WHEREAS, such a study should be obtained from an appropriate vendor, capable of providing a brief but compreh...
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