Convictions rise in Kane County

Felony cases filed in Kane County have increased for a second straight year, a period in which prosecutors Tuesday said they tallied a 96 percent overall conviction rate.

The state's attorney's office authorized 3,576 felony cases from Dec. 1, 2006, to Saturday, an increase of 206 from the previous calendar year, case records show. In 2005, 2,989 felony cases were filed.

The 96 percent conviction rate applies to the 2,516 cases cleared off the docket in 2007. Of those, 118 were felony trials, 78 which ended in a conviction, according to the data.

"That's a pretty historical number," said John Barsanti, the county's state's attorney. "I think that's a great conviction rate. A fantastic conviction rate."

The steady boost in felony cases is in part due to broader powers Barsanti enacted after he was elected in late 2004, after a campaign in which he vowed that more cases would end at trial, instead of a plea deal.

His predecessor, Meg Gorecki, required police to meet strict evidence requirements before her lieutenants would authorize felony charges.

Barsanti pared down some of the standards to prosecute more crimes as felonies, despite criticism his office has been overcharging cases.

He said record of the case load and convictions refutes that belief.

"I don't think you can do much better than that," Barsanti said of the overall success rate.

Prosecutors also won convictions in 57 of 74 drunken-driving trials, and in 109 of 212 misdemeanor cases that went to trial in 2007, according to the data, logged by Barsanti's office.

Kane County also tried 43 juvenile cases, 21 ending in a guilty verdict. There also were 338 trials for traffic cases, of which 265 ended in a conviction, the records show.