Common Law Privilege Barring Civil Arrests at Courthouses Reaffirmed by General Order in Cook County & Steps for Statewide Expansion
Chief Judge Evans has issued a General Administrative Order (GAO), effective today, asserting the common law privilege against civil arrests of people attending court in the Circuit Court of Cook County.
The order states that no one attending court, as a witness or otherwise, “will be subjected to a civil arrest in or around the courthouse” except in cases where there’s a judicial warrant or order authorizing that arrest or an emergency. This includes civil immigration arrests by ICE agents and other federal officials. The order notes: “The fair administration of justice requires that courts remain open and accessible, and that litigants and witnesses may appear without fear of civil arrest.”
Illinois law has long recognized a common law privilege against civil arrests in and around courthouses. We applaud the Office of the Chief Judge’s affirmation of this privilege and clear support of the rule of law.
Both Chicago Appleseed and our partners at the Chicago Council of Lawyers have also joined in support of the Court Access, Safety, and Participation Act.
The bill, sponsored by Representative Norma Hernandez and Senator Celina Villanueva, would ban civil arrests—including immigration arrests made without a judicial warrant—in courthouses and codify common law privilege in Illinois. In the past several months, the unprecedented increase in civil arrests by federal immigration officials in and around Illinois courthouses has made communities less safe and hindered access to justice, with at least 14 Illinois residents being subjected to civil immigration enforcement actions at courthouses.
The Court Access, Safety, and Participation Act does not apply to any federal or immigration courts, but would prohibit civil arrests from taking place “inside, on the way to, or coming home from, any Illinois courthouse.” It would also allow for a civil action to be taken against those who violate the law. We urge the Illinois Legislature to pass the bill and encourage Governor Pritzker to sign it promptly.
Both the GAO and the Court Access, Safety, and Participation Act’s messages are clear: There can be no justice without safety for everyone who enters the courthouse—whether a defendant, a witness, an attorney, a judge or community member.