DuPage County Felony Defense From a Former Prosecutor

Whether the arrest happened in Wheaton, Naperville or anywhere else in the county, a felony charge in DuPage County is prosecuted by the DuPage County State’s Attorney’s Office, and the case moves through a set series of hearings that usually takes months.

A felony charge is frightening, and the first few days can feel like they’re moving without you. They aren’t random. Each step has a purpose and a deadline, and knowing them helps you make decisions instead of just reacting.

How a Felony Case Moves in DuPage

These are the stages in the order they usually come. Some cases resolve partway through, and some go all the way to a verdict.

1. First appearance and pretrial release. Illinois ended cash bail on September 18, 2023, under the Pretrial Fairness Act. Everyone charged is now presumed eligible for release, usually on conditions such as coming to court and following the judge’s orders. For certain charges, the State can file a petition asking the judge to hold you until trial. It has to prove its case by clear and convincing evidence, and you have the right to a lawyer, to testify, to call witnesses and to question the State’s witnesses at that hearing.^{8, 9, 1}
2. Preliminary hearing or grand jury. A felony can only go forward if a judge finds probable cause at a preliminary hearing or a grand jury returns an indictment. That has to happen within 30 days if you’re in custody, or within 60 days of your arrest if you’ve been released. A preliminary hearing is often the first time a witness answers questions under oath.^{10, 2}
3. Discovery. I request the police reports, recorded statements, video, lab results and phone or computer extractions, and I read them against each other, looking for gaps between what a report says and what a video shows.
4. Motions. If evidence came from an unlawful stop, search or interrogation, I can ask the court to suppress it. I can also ask the court to dismiss a charge that has a legal defect.¹¹
5. Negotiation or trial. A case can be resolved by agreement, and whether to accept a plea offer is your decision to make, with the full picture in front of you. If you’re in custody, the State generally has to bring you to trial within 120 days. If you’ve been released, you can demand trial, and the State then has 160 days.¹²

What Supervising Felony Trials Taught Me

When I supervised the felony trial division, I reviewed how cases were built before they went in front of a jury. I saw which files were ready for trial and which ones depended on a single witness, a single search or a lab report no one had looked at closely.

I use that same review now, from the defense side. I prepare every felony case as if it’s going to trial, because that’s how I find the weak spots, and because a well-prepared case gives you real choices when it’s time to decide between a plea offer and a jury.

Felony Charges I Defend

• Drug charges: possession, possession with intent to deliver and delivery. The amount, the substance and where the search happened shape the charge.
• Weapons charges: including the offense that was known as AUUW, renamed aggravated unlawful possession of a weapon on January 1, 2025.¹³ These cases often turn on where the gun was and whether it was loaded and accessible.
• Violent crimes: aggravated battery, robbery, home invasion and homicide.
• Sex crimes: cases where the investigation, the interviews and the timeline need careful review from the first day. For several years I was the State’s Attorney’s Office’s only prosecutor handling child pornography cases, so I know how these investigations are built.
• Theft and fraud: theft, retail theft, forgery and identity theft. I founded the county’s Financial Identity Theft Task Force as a prosecutor, so I know how these investigations are put together.
• White collar crimes: embezzlement and financial fraud cases built on bank records, spreadsheets and email.
• Felony DUI: a third DUI is a Class 2 felony, and certain aggravating facts make even a first DUI a felony.¹⁴

What’s at Stake Beyond Prison

A felony conviction reaches well past the sentence, and these consequences can last longer than any time served.

Firearm Rights

A felony conviction is grounds for the Illinois State Police to deny or revoke your FOID card, which you need to own a gun in Illinois.¹⁵

Jobs and Professional Licenses

A felony record shows up on background checks. If you hold a professional license or work in a regulated field, tell me early, so we can weigh how each option could affect it.

Immigration

For a noncitizen, some felony convictions can lead to deportation, and others can affect a green card or citizenship application.¹⁶ If you’re not a citizen, tell me at the start, before any decision about a plea, so we can bring in immigration advice where it’s needed.

What to Do Now

If you’ve been charged, or you think an investigation is headed your way, talk with me before you talk with the police or anyone else about the facts. Bring whatever paperwork you have: the charging document, any release order and the date of your next court appearance.

When you call, we’ll start with where your case is right now and what the next hearing will decide.