Attorney General Candidate

Questions & Answers

What is the importance of the Illinois Attorney General to your constituents in Champaign County?

The Attorney General’s Office plays a critical role in advocating on behalf of the State and Illinoisans, administering key programs, and ensuring that the law is uniformly and fairly enforced. The Attorney General’s Office has numerous statutory responsibilities, including: (1) enforcing consumer protection, environmental, and anti-discrimination laws; (2) representing Illinois in legal cases in which the State or its citizens have specific interests; (3) assisting State’s Attorneys with the execution of their duties; (4) protecting the public’s interests in the provision of electric, natural gas, water, cable, video and telecommunication services; (5) providing advice regarding the interpretation and implementation of the Freedom of Information Act and the Open Meetings Act; (6) administering provisions of the Charitable Trust Act and the Violent Crime Victims Assistance Act; and (7) representing State officers in actions involving the performance of their official duties. I would work to ensure that those statutory responsibilities were being efficiently and effectively fulfilled in a nonpartisan manner.

Additionally, I would prioritize: (i) enhancing the Office’s efforts and investigative tools to combat public corruption; (ii) coordinating statewide efforts to address the opioid epidemic in Illinois; (iii) collaborating with the legislature to draft and enact workers’ compensation and criminal justice reform measures; and (iv) protecting Illinoisans from harassment, including peer-to-peer harassment in schools and sexual harassment within State government and the workforce at large. These priorities would positively impact all constituents in Champaign County, regardless of background or political affiliation.

Why are you qualified to be Illinois Attorney General?

I graduated from Harvard Law School in 2007, where I won a Boykin C. Wright Memorial Award for appellate advocacy. Following graduation, I worked in Chicago as an attorney in the litigation groups of Sidley Austin LLP and Burke, Warren, MacKay & Serritella, P.C., representing businesses in complex commercial litigation matters, including civil RICO, class action and fraud disputes. I also advised religious institutions in constitutional matters. In 2013, I returned to my hometown of Urbana, Illinois, and joined the litigation group of Meyer Capel, P.C., where I handle complex commercial litigation and disputes involving large trusts and estates.

The Illinois Supreme Court has appointed me to serve on the Illinois Supreme Court Committee on Equality and as a Commissioner on the Illinois Supreme Court Commission on Professionalism. Additionally, for the past eleven years, I have served on the national board of directors of Prison Fellowship, which advocates for bipartisan criminal justice reform measures and provides vocational and educational opportunities for inmates to rebuild their lives upon being released.

Since 2002, I also have been a national advocate for measures to protect students from harassment. In recognition of my advocacy, I was named one of Fight Crime, Invest in Kids’ “Champions for Children” and received a leadership award from the National Center for Victims of Crime. As someone who has been the victim of harassment and understands the feeling of being powerless, I would fight to make sure that every Illinoisan—regardless of position or background—was vigorously represented.

What is a key policy difference between you and your Primary Opponent[s]?

A key policy difference is my emphasis on increasing governmental transparency and accountability. I would utilize the full measure of the Office’s power to investigate allegations of public corruption—such as allegations of patronage hiring and improper awarding of government grants. Additionally, I would advocate for the expansion of the Office’s investigative tools, such as subpoena and grand jury powers, to enhance the Illinois Attorney General’s ability to fight public corruption. Furthermore, I would try to ensure that the Office of Public Access Counselor—which is tasked with providing advice regarding the interpretation and implementation of the Freedom of Information Act and the Open Meetings Act—has sufficient resources and personnel.

Is there anything else you would like to say to an undecided voter in Champaign County?

My roots run deep in Champaign County. I was born and raised in Champaign-Urbana, graduated from Urbana High School and the University of Illinois, and reside and practice law in Champaign-Urbana. I would be humbled to have the support of people from my community, and I would be honored to represent our great traditions and institutions in the Illinois Attorney General’s Office.