Sangamon County celebrates one year of new domestic violence court system

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) - Every day, judges in Sangamon County handle cases with offenses ranging from burglary, assault, reckless driving and more. Judges often hear similar cases back-to-back, with victims and perpetrators of cases in the same courtroom. But last year, Sangamon County started a new system to separate the domestic violence cases from the rest.

"One case that we get more than any other case, if I look like a particular type of case, is domestic violence cases," said Sangamon County State's Attorney John Milhiser. "They're a priority for this office, because those are the types of cases where somebody could get severely injured or killed. We do not want that to happen."

The new system means domestic violence cases are put on an expedited docket, with one judge who handles all of the cases. This means victims don't have to rehash cases with multiple judges.

"That judge can also follow that case beyond conviction, beyond plea," said Hon. Jack Davis, an associate Circuit Judge in Sangamon County and the presiding judge over the domestic violence court. "It makes sense, and it is a huge benefit to have one judge being able to monitor that progress of that case to ensure that it not only stays on track, but also that there's some real follow-up and there's some real accountability for those involved."

Another factor that makes the system different is that victims in domestic violence cases can join court virtually. Davis said this can make the logistics easier for victims and also avoid the fear of having to be in the same room as a perpetrator.

Sangamon County based the idea for separating domestic violence cases from other Illinois counties.

"Other than Winnebago County, we are the only other county in this state that I'm familiar with that has a focus docket on domestic violence cases," Davis said. "Those cases, without a focused, concentrated effort on this type of case, those cases would likely still be going on."

Milhiser said they've seen domestic violence cases resolved faster since starting this new system. He plans to continue separating domestic violence cases in this way.