Katy Agans
Contributing Writer
Chief Justice Timothy Evans is one of the most powerful figures in Cook County. Evans oversees over 400 judges throughout Cook County’s 10 court divisions and six districts.
On Feb. 28, Evans came to Dominican to give a keynote speech in the Martin Recital Hall to an audience of around 80 students, faculty, and staff. In his speech, Evans talked about his work with restorative justice.
Restorative justice is a system that aims to bring justice to both victims and offenders.
The primary focus of restorative justice is to repair the harm caused by crime and to help offenders make amends so they can become positive contributing members of their community.
According to Evans, in Cook County, and in the country in general, we have not seen the court system act as a system that stops people from engaging in crime.
As chief justice, Evans has tried to change this by creating restorative justice court systems.
These systems aim to serve anyone who has committed a crime and is between the ages of 18 and 26, according to Evans.
Restorative justice courts are designed to help perpetrators learn from their mistakes.
Those convicted of a crime must admit to what they did wrong and work to repair the damage they caused. This is done by repairing any physical damage they caused while committing the crime. Perpetrators are also required to repair any emotional damage they caused to the surrounding community, according to Evans.
This repairing of the damages is done through a repair of harm agreement which is created and agreed upon by the perpetrator, the community, and the victim of the crime.
Evans has seen first-hand the positive impact that restorative justice courts can have, and he believes that this court system can benefit us all in the future.
Evans’ speech was followed by a question-and-answer session.
Afterward, student Eddie Rivera said he felt like Evans’ speech aligned with Dominican’s values.
“His speech is inspiring and motivating,” Rivera said. “It has inspired me to make a positive global impact which is what Dominican’s mission is.”
Student Yasmine Silva said she appreciated learning about the positive impact restorative justice courts can have.
“I found out a lot about the stats about the court system and learned how helpful restorative justice is,” she said.
