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Article updated: 9/2/2012 10:10 AM

Courtroom artists’ future in peril

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Lou 'L.D.' Chukman became a courtroom sketch artist almost by accident 37 years ago. Here is his portrait of Brian Dugan pleading guilty in 2009 to the 1983 murder of Naperville resident Jeanine Nicarico.

Lou 'L.D.' Chukman

A courtroom sketch by Tom Gianni during the Drew Peterson murder trial showed one of the defendant's lawyers doing online browsing of expensive shoes. "A camera never would have caught that," Gianni said.

Tom Gianni

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A handful of Chicago-area courtroom artists expect to lose a significant chunk of their livelihood as cameras enter DuPage and Cook county trial courts for the first time in state history. They're disappointed, but not surprised. "Frankly, I'm surprised the 20th Century didn't grab me by the shoulder and said, 'Go back to the 19th Century. We have cameras,'" artist Tom Gianni said.

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