What did we do ... to keep our democracy in tact?
- The Honorable Elijah E. Cummings
What did we do ... to keep our democracy in tact?
- The Honorable Elijah E. Cummings
Anna has been an Illinois attorney for 24 years, and has lived in DeKalb County for over fifteen years. Originally from Joliet, IL, she now lives in unincorporated Earlville, IL.
Anna went to undergrad at NIU, obtained her Bachelors degree, graduated Summa Cum Laude in Sociology with Emphasis in Criminology, and graduated with Upper Division Honors after participating in the Honors Program, with her Honors Thesis focused on rape shield law. She also received Departmental Honors in Sociology, and further did extensive ethnographic research on Community Policing, and did ride-alongs with police on active duty.
Anna was also co- author with James Massey and Susan L. Miller, both past Professors at NIU, to a published article called “Civil Forfeiture of Property: The Victimization of Women as Innocent Owners and Third Parties” within the book called “Crime Control and Women” edited by Susan Miller.
Anna attended Law School at NIU College of Law and graduated Cum Laude in 1996. When she entered NIU College of Law, she already had a keen sense of justice and fairness. During her second year of law school, she obtained her 7-11 license to practice, and worked in the Kane County Public Defenders office, where she learned criminal defense and worked with and across from some of the best savvy and skilled lawyers. Anna also learned from Judges rich in knowledge of the criminal law. She learned that our U.S. Constitution plays a fundamental role in every day workings of the court house, down to the very last traffic stop. After graduating law school, the Public Defenders Office hired her to work full time. There, she did her best to honor and protect the 4th Amendment of the Constitution, which was on trial almost every day due to illegal stops and searches.
In 1998, Anna had a brush with ovarian cancer that left her wanting a life change. She left the Public Defenders office in 1999 and opened a private practice and partnership that was short lived. She soon went out into her own law practice, and she has had her law practice since 2000 (20 years). Anna has handled a variety of cases, and has represented both Plaintiff and Defendant. She has practiced years of criminal defense and has honed her Motion skills to a fine point. She has extensive criminal law experience over the years as a public defender and private attorney, both felony and misdemeanor, including Class X felonies. The last several years Anna has focused her practice upon real estate transactions.
Anna wants to serve in the position of the DeKalb County State's Attorney because she feels that is where she can do the most good for the most people in these tumultuous yet exciting times. Women, people of color, LGBTQ2 and others are still, in 2020, vulnerable to abuse and victimization not only by others, but by the criminal justice system and the courts. We can do something about it right now. Anna is here to do her part, and ensure that our State's Attorney's Office is honorable and fair and true to all people in DeKalb County. She will honor others before her who have done great things for the people of DeKalb County ( ie Mental Health Court and Drug Court), and do what she can to make even better those programs. Criminal Justice Reform, including ending money bail and ending mass incarceration are at the forefront of her passion, and she is here to ensure that our Criminal Justice System is fair and just to all, regardless of race, gender, religion.
Truth, Integrity, Justice. That is what Anna stands for.
Anna is a Member of the DeKalb County Bar Association, Illinois State Bar Association, Kane County Bar Association, American Bar Association
Criminal Justice Reform
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