Battlefield of criminal contempt has well-intentioned casualties

Prosecution and Procedure

By David J. Robinson

David J. Robinson is a lawyer, adjunct professor, author and chief deputy director for the State’s Attorneys Appellate Prosecutor.

Posted May 6, 2021 11:27 AM

The battlefield of criminal contempt is littered with well-intentioned casualties. Here is a roadmap to avoid the land mines.Illinois courts have, of course, “the inherent power to punish, as contempt, conduct that is calculated to impede, embarrass, or obstruct the court in its administration of justice or derogate from the court’s authority or dignity, or to bring the administration of the law into disrepute. A finding of criminal contempt is punitive in nature and is intended to vindicate the dignity and authority of …

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