Social media drives today’s teenage culture—spawning viral dances, pranks, challenges and memes that spread nationwide in hours. Many of these challenges appear harmless, silly, even empowering. Yet increasingly, teens in Illinois are finding themselves drawn into serious legal consequences for chasing likes. What begins as harmless fun can turn into criminal charges, juvenile hearings, or…
Smartphones are windows into private lives—texts, photos, location history, banking apps, medical records, and more. When police in Illinois seek to search a phone with a search warrant, the legal stakes are high. Courts must balance investigative needs with constitutional protections under the Fourth Amendment and state precedents. This deep dive explores how Illinois courts…
Allegations of nonconsensual sharing of intimate images are among the most damaging charges a person can face in Illinois. They threaten careers, reputations, and personal relationships, often before a judge or jury evaluates a single piece of evidence. Prosecutors pursue these cases aggressively, jurors may assume guilt, and the emotional stakes are high. Yet the…
Confessing to a crime is often seen as the ultimate proof of guilt. Jurors, judges, and prosecutors all tend to place enormous weight on a defendant’s own words. Yet history shows that confessions can be misleading. A false confession occurs when someone admits to a crime they did not commit. It may seem unthinkable, but…
In 2025, license plate readers are everywhere in Illinois. Mounted on patrol cars, stoplights, highway overpasses, and city intersections, they capture millions of scans every day. These systems automatically photograph license plates, convert the images into data, and log the time and location. Police officers use that information to find stolen vehicles, track suspects, and…
As of 2025, nearly every sworn law enforcement officer in Illinois is required to wear a body camera. What began as a pilot program in a handful of agencies is now the statewide standard. That means body camera footage is now a common feature in criminal trials, civil lawsuits, and even routine hearings across Illinois….
Text messages have replaced phone calls as the primary way people communicate. Quick, casual and often unfiltered, they capture everything from jokes to serious conversations. But what many people don’t realize is that those same texts can become powerful evidence in Illinois courts. Judges and juries may see your digital words displayed on a screen,…
In today’s digital world, almost every question, curiosity or impulse gets typed into a search bar. From recipes to medical advice to directions, Google has become an extension of human memory. But what happens when those searches show up in a courtroom? In Illinois, prosecutors increasingly look to Google search history as evidence in criminal…
A grand jury indictment is a formal accusation that someone committed a crime. It is issued after a grand jury reviews evidence presented by the prosecution and determines there is probable cause to move forward with criminal charges. In Illinois, grand jury indictments are often used for serious crimes, including felony cases, but they are…
Animal cruelty is taken very seriously under Illinois law, which prohibits acts of abuse, neglect, or mistreatment toward animals. Depending on the circumstances, animal cruelty may be charged as either a misdemeanor or a felony, with penalties ranging from fines to prison time. Illinois has some of the strictest animal protection laws in the country,…
