Policy Brief: Community Courts in Cook County

Today we release a two-part policy brief discussing an alternative prosecution strategy called community-based justice. Part I makes the case for community-base justice by comparing Cook County’s current misdemeanor justice system--which adjudicates over 150,000 misdemeanors annually (pdf)--with com...
February 27, 2013

Tools: Alternative Small Dollar Loan Toolkit

Chicago Appleseed was pleased to partner with the Illinois Asset Building Coalition in the development of the Alternative Small Dollar Loan Toolkit (ASDL Toolkit). The ASDL Toolkit serves as a resource for banks and credit unions interested in offering a safe, profitable, small dollar loan (SDL) pr...
January 28, 2013

Register Now for Webinar: Creating Safe, Profitable, Small Dollar Loans

Date: Thursday, January 17th Time: 2:00 pm CST Register Now Individuals need access to safe small dollar loans to assist them during periods of financial crisis without causing even greater hardship. Our Alternative Small Dollar Loan Toolkit aims to help banks and credit unions develop a sustainabl...
January 12, 2013

Tools: Take A Sample Ballot With You When You Vote for Cook County Judges

Early voting has begun! Below are sample ballots for Cook County judicial elections. Click each ballot to find a list of every judge up for retention in Cook County, followed by a recommendation for retention. In Cook County, Judges must receive a "Yes" vote from at least 60% of voters in order to r...
October 22, 2012

“A Thousand Small Sanities” and Why Judges Matter

"A Thousand Small Sanities" is worth a look for anyone interested in learning about rational, incremental criminal justice system reform. It's a succinct, straightforward history of criminal justice reform in New York City. In Small Sanities, the Center for Court Innovation Director Greg Berman writ...
August 29, 2012