The Hon. Robbin Stuckert (Ret), currently the Chair of the Illinois Supreme Court’s Pretrial Practices Implementation Task Force (Task Force), was announced this month as the recipient of the 2021 Charles Daniels Judicial Leadership Award by The National Association of Pretrial Services Agencies (NAPSA).

“I have had the tremendous pleasure of working with Judge Robbin Stuckert while she has served as chair of the Illinois Supreme Court’s Commission on Pretrial Practices, and Pretrial Implementation Task Force for the last several years,” said Illinois Supreme Court Chief Justice Anne M. Burke. “She is fully deserving of every recognition she receives for her work on pretrial reform. Her commitment and expertise in this area are second to none.”

The Judicial Leadership Award was created in 2019 to memorialize the career of New Mexico Supreme Court Justice Charles W. Daniels, an advocate for pretrial reform in his state. The award is presented to a judicial officer who “exemplifies leadership to reform pretrial systems and agencies through legal and evidence-based practices”.

Judge Stuckert started work on pretrial reform in DeKalb County in 2014 and her efforts led to DeKalb County receiving Agency Accreditation from NAPSA, the only Illinois county to receive NASPA Agency Accreditation.

In 2017 Judge Stuckert was appointed as Chair of the Illinois Supreme Court’s Commission on Pretrial Practices which released its final report in 2020 after two years of in which the Commission studied best practices in use around the country, consulted pretrial reform experts, listened to stakeholders throughout the state, and analyzed the myriad sources of academic and professional analysis of pretrial issues. The Task Force was created by the Illinois Supreme Court in order to prioritize and implement the Commission’s final report's recommendations.

“For the last several years I have had the honor of working with Judge Robbin Stuckert through the Conference of Chief Circuit Judges, the Supreme Court Commission on Pretrial Practices, and on implementation of the recommendations from the Commission’s Final Report,” said Marcia Meis, Director of the Administrative Office of the Illinois Courts.

“Judge Stuckert is an exemplary leader and her practical experience and tireless work in the realm of pretrial practices have been a gamechanger for reform efforts in Illinois.”