Bob Fioretti: Cook County State's Attorney

COOK COUNTY, IL — Bob Fioretti is running on the Republican ticket for Cook County State's Attorney. Fioretti is facing Democratic opponent Eileen O'Neill Burke and Libertarian Andrew Kopinski.

You can find Fioretti's answers to the Patch candidate questionnaire below:

Town of Residence: Chicago

Position Sought: Cook County State's Attorney

Party Affiliation: Republican

Family (Names, ages and any pertinent detail you wish to share): Wife Nicole

Education: Mendel High School, University of Illinois-Champaign Urbana (BA), Northern Illinois University (JD)

Occupation (Please include years of experience)

Civil Rights lawyer

Previous or current elected or appointed office:

Two-term Alderman from Chicago's Historic Black 2nd Ward

Campaign website:

www.fiorettiforcook.com

The single most pressing issue facing the Cook County State's Attorney's Office is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

The most pressing issue in the Cook County State's Attorney Office is the current policy of coddling violent criminals. The public has lost faith that the State's Attorney is on their side.

How would you, if elected, support law enforcement and assistant state's attorneys?

Law enforcement does not feel the current Administration supports or respects them. That will change when I am State's Attorney. In addition, many assistants have left the office in disgust at the current Administration's policies. I will invite them back to the office and offer the same pay grade and title as when they left. Too much institutional knowledge has walked out the door.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidate seeking this post?

There are several differences with my Democratic opponent. First and foremost, as Reverend Jackson said, I have represented the wrongly convicted, while my opponent wrongly convicts them. I will compare my civil rights record with hers any time. I am unapologetically the law-and-order candidate. My opponent pretended to be a law and order candidate in the Democratic primary in order to attract GOP crossover votes. Once that mission was accomplished, on the day her victory was declared (on April Fool's Day no less), she was quoted as saying "I don't know why anyone would mistake me as a law-and-order candidate. That's a mistake." Make no mistake, I am the law-and-order candidate. Third, my experience makes me vastly more qualified. I am the only civil rights candidate to ever run for Cook County State's Attorney.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)?

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform:

The public corruption unit in the office must be expanded. The federal government correctly takes the lead on the major corruption cases, but there is far too much corruption in Cook County to be left solely to the feds. There is also a section of the office that deals with property taxes. I will launch an investigation into the most corrupt property tax system in the United States. The average homeowner has no voice in the process. I will be that voice.

If you gain this position, what accomplishment would define your term in office as a success?

It would be a success if I can restore faith in the office that violent criminals will be treated the way violent criminals should be treated.

Why are you running for office?

The Democratic Party's current philosophy on crime is the criminal defendant is the good guy, law enforcement is the bad guy, and the victims don't matter. I want to change that on day one.

What questions should be asked of current employees accountable to your office?

Are you prepared to enforce the law as it is written. If yes, they are welcome to stay. If not, they should begin looking for another job.

What has the current state’s attorney done right? What has she done wrong?

Kim Foxx has done little right, but she did move the ball on expungement for minor, low level offenses such as marijuana possession, though there is much work still to do. She has also done some good work with exonerees. Almost everything else has been a disaster. Her interactions with law enforcement, her lack of empathy for victims, and her coddling of violent criminals are unacceptable.

Do you think the SAFE-T Act/no cash bail has been effective?

The SAFE-T Act has not been effective, at least according to the records kept by the Cook County Circuit Court Clerk. I have long advocated that low level defendants with a minimal record get released on no cash bail. My problem is that the SAFE-T Act treats violent offenders, especially those with long violent records, get treated in the same manner as low level offenders. It also takes the discretion out of the judge's hands. There should be more offenses, such as assaults against police officers and senior citizens, that are detainable.

Should drug dealers tied to opioid overdose deaths be prosecuted in Cook County?

I will enforce the law as it is written. If a drug dealer is tied to an opioid overdose death, they will be prosecuted as the law is written.

Do you support making criminal cases available to the public online? Why or why not?

In every other county in Illinois, criminal cases are available to the public online. Cook County should be no different. There is no compelling public interest to keep this information from the public.

Do you support "no knock" warrants? If so, what type of cases is this tactic appropriate for?

I support "no knock" warrants only in extraordinary circumstances.

What is your strategy for communicating with the public?

As Alderman, I had an open door policy. I never asked anyone who walked through the door about the age, ethnicity, religion or zip code they lived in. I helped everyone and held regular town hall meetings in my ward. I would hold similar meetings in different parts of the county on a regular basis.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

Early in my legal career, I worked in the City of Chicago's Corporation Counsel Office under Harold Washington. He asked me to draft a general order banning CPD using a choke hold. I did and it is still the policy of CPD today. As Alderman, I began Operation Safe Passage after a high school student in my ward was gunned down outside of Crane High School. Parents were afraid to send their kids to school, so I organized a coalition of business, religious, and law enforcement groups to personally escort the kids to high school.