Posted on January 30, 2019 in Divorce

For parents, the hardest part of a divorce may be the effect it has on their children.

Fortunately, there are things you can do that will mitigate the emotional damage from a divorce on your own child. Here are the things to keep in mind:

1. Remember that your child is unique

Don't get caught up in all the statistical information out there about the effects of divorce on children. None of the available statistics are going to tell you how your child is going to react.

2. Remember that the first year is the hardest

The first year following a divorce is hardest on everyone. It's the first "everything," including summer vacation, Christmas and birthdays — without an intact family unit. It gets easier as everyone settles into a new normal routine.

3. Understand that your child's age plays into your child's reaction

Very young children may feel confused or frightened at having to travel between two homes. School-age children may blame themselves for the divorce — especially if the parents fought over issues related to their upbringing. Teenagers may act out socially or withdraw. They may even choose sides. You have to tailor your reaction not only to your individual child but to his or her age group. Be willing to seek professional help if the situation seems over your head or out of control.

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 Posted on January 25, 2019 in Criminal Defense

The Chief Judge of the Southern District of Illinois has issued a dire warning about the consequences of the federal government's ongoing shutdown on the justice system.

There are many obvious pain points related to the shutdown — including the vast numbers of unpaid federal workers. However, many of the shutdown's less visible consequences to the criminal justice system are also serious.

One of those consequences is the inability to pay expert witnesses for their testimony. These witnesses are often used in drug cases to challenge the state's claims of a drug's purity. This can drastically affect a sentence if the defendant is convicted.

Another problem the courts will soon face is the inability to pay jurors the $50 per diem they are due for their service. While that might seem trivial to some, it probably doesn't to the jurors — many of whom must take time off from their jobs to do their civic duty.

The judge is concerned that some jurors may rush their decisions on trials rather than face the prospect of too many days without any kind of income. Allowing only those who can "afford to serve" act as jurors would deprive defendants of a true jury of their peers since it would put only a select few in the jury box.

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 Posted on January 15, 2019 in Criminal Defense

Attorney Alex Fawell is selected to the Illinois Rising Stars list for 2019. Alex is a managing partner at Fawell & Fawell who represents clients in family and criminal law matters.

Earning this honor only four years into his legal career is a significant achievement, and further signifies the high level of excellence Alex brings to his clients every day.

Overview of the nomination process

Attorneys of merit are anonymously nominated for selection to the Super Lawyers/Rising Stars list each year. Every nominee is carefully researched by third parties and reviewed by their peers. They must also be approved by a panel of credentialed attorneys.

Attorneys selected for the Rising Stars list comprise less than 2.5 percent of attorneys in Illinois. In addition to this rigorous selection process, nominees for the Rising Stars list must have been in practice for less than ten years. These attorneys show significant achievement early on in their legal career and show considerable promise for the future.

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 Posted on January 09, 2019 in Divorce

It takes strength to leave an unhappy marriage. People sometimes think of divorce as a failure of sorts, but the reality is that it's much easier to stay in a dysfunctional relationship and maintain the status quo than it is to leave one and start again.

That being said, there are some mistakes that you don't want to make on your new-found path to freedom — especially if you have children, including:

1. Airing all their "dirty laundry" in public

It's one thing to tell your best friend, your therapist and your parents about your spouse's cheating and other marital failures — but it's quite another to blast all your private issues all over the neighborhood or on Facebook. Your spouse may not be your spouse much longer — but he or she is still going to be your children's other parent forever.

The short-term vindication you may get from vilifying your spouse (no matter how justified) isn't worth the damage you could do to his or her reputation — and your children's feelings. Imagine for example, how your children may feel if the whole neighborhood suddenly becomes aware that their mother is a gambler, or their father is a drunk and a womanizer? If you kept something private before your divorce for the sake of your family, think twice before you choose to reveal it now.

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 Posted on January 03, 2019 in Criminal Defense

As another holiday season moves past, thousands of Americans will be anxiously awaiting the results of the genealogy tests they received as presents.

Law enforcement officers may also be waiting on the newest addition to what has become an increasingly useful tool when it comes to closing cold cases: DNA databanks.

As recently as November 2017, the 2001 murder of a 25-year-old woman was solved thanks to DNA that was left behind at a crime scene and modern-day genetic testing that identified the killer. It was the 24th time since April that suspects in crimes have been identified the same way. At least two of the cases that have been solved had plagued investigators for 30 or more years.

The majority of the cases have been cracked with the aid of genetic genealogists at Parabon NanoLabs. Genetic genealogy is an emerging discipline that allows researchers to track an unknown individual — in this case, a suspected killer — through the genetic data submitted to genealogy databases by their families. The data gleaned from all of those genetic tests that people take seeking to learn more about their ancestry can then be used to enhance things like the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS), which is used by the law enforcement.

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 Posted on December 26, 2018 in Family Law

Relocating after your divorce can be tricky if you have a child.

Even if you have primary physical custody of your child, that doesn't mean that the court will automatically allow you to relocate a significant distance away from the child's other parent. A long-distance move could significantly interfere with that parent's visitation rights — and might not be best for your child.

Before you approach a family court in California about relocating, it's important to understand the way that the court will evaluate such a request. In general, the court will always put the best interests of your child ahead of your personal or professional goals.

That being said, here are some possible reasons for relocating that the court might consider acceptable:

• You want to move back to an area where you have close relatives who can provide a strong support system for your children.
• You have a job opportunity in another area that could significantly improve your child's economic situation.

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 Posted on December 24, 2018 in Criminal Defense

When facing a serious criminal situation, many Illinois residents may not fully understand their legal options. While you likely know that you have the ability to create and present a criminal defense against any charges you face, you may not know about certain deals or agreements that could potentially result in your facing lesser consequences for the alleged crime.

Plea bargains or plea deals are not an uncommon tool in criminal justice cases. Often, these deals result in individuals receiving lesser consequences or the dismissal of certain charges for pleading guilty to other allegations. However, you may not have heard of cooperation agreements or non-prosecution agreements.

Cooperation agreement

As the name suggests, a cooperation agreement may come into play if a person chooses to cooperate with authorities. This type of agreement may not be an option in your case. However, in the event that it is, here is some information about this type of agreement to consider:

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 Posted on December 16, 2018 in Criminal Defense

Are you thinking about borrowing a gun "just in case" something happens?

The world can be a scary place. Sometimes, it just feels better knowing that you have a gun around for protection. If you're going to be alone in a new apartment, going through trouble with a volatile ex, have to walk home late at night after work or have recently been threatened by someone, it's only natural to be concerned for your own safety.

However, borrowing a gun for self defense could open the door to a lot of trouble. You may have a weapon to defend yourself, but using it could land you in jail.

In Illinois, you have the legal right to defend yourself by any means necessary — as long as you reasonably believe that force is the only way to prevent yourself or another from suffering serious bodily injury. Illinois also gives you the right to use force to stop someone from breaking into your home if you fear that they may hurt you or otherwise commit a felony.

However, even if your act of self defense is legal, using a borrowed gun for which you have no permit and without a Firearms Owner's Identification (FOID) card means that you could end up facing serious criminal charges. FOID cards are required before you can legally have any firearm or ammunition in your possession. In addition, you could be in violation of the state's Concealed Carry License (CCL) regulations (if you were carrying the gun in a purse or inside your coat, for example).

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 Posted on December 11, 2018 in Divorce

How do you keep your divorce costs down to a minimum?

Well, just like a wedding, a divorce can vary in cost considerably — and a lot of that cost is up to you and your spouse. Most people just don't realize that there are numerous factors that can quickly drive the cost of a divorce way up. They include:

1. Do you need to litigate?

If you and your spouse can agree on all the terms of your divorce before you hit court, you'll likely save a ton of money. A contested divorce that goes into litigation can raise the expense of a divorce by thousands.

Even if you and your spouse don't totally agree on everything, a collaborative divorce or mediated divorce process may still help you avoid litigation and save.

2. What are you doing with the house?

Your home may be a bit of an albatross during your divorce. Keep it, and you face all sorts of expenses to maintain it — plus you have to buy out your spouse's share of the equity. Sell it, and the equity can be eaten away by realtor's fees, a soft home market and moving costs. Either way, it's a big decision and not something that you can take lightly.

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 Posted on December 04, 2018 in Criminal Defense

Illinois has taken a major step to prevent wrongful convictions and protect innocent people from going to jail based on the word of jailhouse informants.

The Illinois statute, which is considered to be the strongest in the nation, takes aim at a system that rewarded good liars and did nothing to protect the average citizen. Here are some important facts you should know:

• Selling information to the prosecution can be lucrative. Two informants in California, for example, made more than $300,000 in just four years.
• In cases where DNA evidence has later exonerated convicted defendants, jailhouse informants were behind their convictions 16 percent of the time.
• The only other states that have adopted similar measures are California, Florida and Texas. However, Pennsylvania, New York and Washington are trying to pass legislation that would do the same.

Under the new statute, prosecutors in Illinois would have to disclose their intention to use a jailhouse informant's testimony a minimum of 30 days in advance of trial. This gives defense attorneys enough time to fairly investigate an informant's history and credibility. Prosecutors will also be required to explain exactly what the informant is getting out the deal — and how many times the informant has been used in the past.

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