Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx Announces Release of Office’s First Data Report

Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx today announced the release of a first-ever data report, which will provide information about felony cases handled by the State’s Attorney’s Office in 2016.  Accompanying the report is a release of over six years of de-identified case data, which the public can access online.

“When I took office, I made a commitment to dramatically increasing the transparency of the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office,” said State’s Attorney Foxx. “This report represents an important first step in that process. The public deserves to know about the work of this Office. By releasing both the report and the underlying data, we hope to help build an understanding of the SAO’s work and identify challenges and opportunities that will guide our work going forward.”

The Data Report, the first of its kind to be released by the SAO, presents information about over 30,000 cases presented for felony prosecution in 2016, providing information about case approvals, case dispositions, and sentencing, including information about the most often charged offenses. The information also provides breakdowns by race, age, and geography.

A sample of the information presented by the report includes:

• The total number of adult felony cases initiated by the SAO in 2016, of which 54% came from the City of Chicago and 46% from suburban Cook County. 
• The number of unlawful use of a weapon cases presented for charging, with approval rates.
• The rates of plea bargain for various offense categories.
• The percentage, by race and by age, of individuals who have been convicted who were sentenced to prison, probation, or other dispositions. 

The report also includes a map of how cases move through the SAO and a guide to educate readers about how data is collected and organized within the SAO’s existing case management system. The online data release includes data going back to the implementation of the SAO’s current case management system in 2010.

“Knowing what our office is doing is essential if we are going to change how we do things,” said State’s Attorney Foxx. “This report demonstrates the sheer volume of felony cases that are referred to our office by law enforcement, and provides important insight into what a huge undertaking it is to prosecute crime in Cook County. I am committed to expanding the SAO’s data capacity, so that we can work to prosecute crime in a manner that is fair, equitable, and just.”

The Data Report was produced with the support of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. The full report, and the underlying data sets, can be accessed at cookcountystatesattorney.org/data.