Executive Committee authorizes additional assistant state's attorneys as caseloads climb

Will County's Executive Committee voted to set the number of assistant state's attorneys after hearing from county legal leadership about increasing caseloads and staffing needs.

Kevin Meyers and Chris Ko, the chief of the felony division, told the committee the felony office currently handles roughly 4,400 open felony cases and has seen per-assistant workloads rise from roughly 75 cases to about 150 cases each. Ko said modern investigations bring larger volumes of digital evidence, victim-sensitive procedures and more complex petitions, increasing review and trial-preparation time.

Meyers explained that the budget already contains funding for additional positions but Illinois law requires the county to set an authorized head count for assistant state's attorneys before the office can hire. Committee members pressed Meyers and Ko on whether the hiring request reflected COVID-era backlogs, whether the Safety Act's detention-petition workload is inflating front-end work, and whether technology or process reforms could reduce the need for more staff.

Some members asked whether the county should hire support staff or invest in technology rather than add attorneys. Meyers and Ko said the current workload requires additional attorneys in felony, domestic-violence and sex-crimes divisions and described a phased staffing approach in prior budget cycles.

The committee approved Resolution 26-4928 setting the authorized number of assistant state's attorneys (roll call recorded; one member voted no). Meyers said the positions are funded in the current budget but statutory authorization is required to proceed to hire.

What happens next: With the authorized head count set, the State's Attorney's Office may proceed with recruitment subject to budget and hiring timelines. Managers said they will prioritize assignments and continue to use reimbursement/grant funding where available for discrete programs.