Crook County

Chapter 3 describes how defense attorneys adapted their practice to accommodate the racialized culture of the Cook County Courts. Seeking to understand the role of defense attorneys in racialized justice, Gonzalez Van Cleve clerked for the Public Defender’s Office to observe their actions firsthand. On her first day, she was handed a packet that included the Public Defender’s credo to advocate rigorously for the indigent. This credo contrasted starkly with the behavior she witnessed in court, where defense attorneys actively participated in the racialized culture. Gonzales Van Cleve tasked her researchers with interviewing defense attorneys about race, class, and fairness at the court. Some interviewees gave ambivalent or open-ended answers, others stressed the good intentions of court professionals. Those who admitted that bias existed blamed the system, rather than individual prosecutors or judges. Gonzales Van Cleve attributes these responses to colorblind racism, which defers blame away from individuals to avoid complicity in racialized court practices. In their view, it is the system that is racist, not the actors.

Violence plays a central role in governing court behavior. Defense attorneys are bullied, marginalized, humiliated, and punished when they openly challenge or fail to adhere to court culture by overtly advocating for their clients.