Jesse Jackson Files Lawsuit Over Cook County Budget Cuts

From ABC7-TV (Chicago):

Reverend Jesse Jackson is taking the fight over Cook County budget cuts to court. Jackson plans to file two civil rights lawsuits because of cuts at the public defenders office and health care cuts.

Cook County’s budget cuts will eliminate nearly three dozen lawyers in the public defender’s office, and the concern is that that will further clog the courts and the county jail. “The spectra of a lawsuit is a very real poss8ibility,” said Stephen Stern, Cook County Bar Association

Just as jail overcrowding has led the federal court to order the hiring of more sheriff’s deputies, some are warning that budget cuts will end up costing more in the long run.

“There are people in the Cook County Jail who’ve been there for five years waiting for trial because they’re poor and can’t afford a lawyer,” said Rev. Jesse Jackson.