Q&A with Shapiro
Q. Why are you running for this office? Is there a particular issue that motivates you, and if so, what? What will be your main priority?
I have worked in the courts for over 32 years and believe that the Clerk's Office is extremely mismanaged. Hiring practices need to be completely overhauled and the entire computerized system must be brought into the Modern Era. I believe that I am the right person at the right time to take over the reins of that office and be the kind of leader who will, by example, make that office run properly.
Q. As a non-incumbent, tell us what contributions you would make.
I will bring modern technology to the Clerk's Office, and with the assistance of competent technicians install it for the benefit of all concerned. I will eliminate waste at all levels, and eliminate the accouterments which are unnecessary to be the Clerk of the Court, including eliminating the security detail, chauffeur and gas wasting vehicles. The computerized system, which will have a central database, will obviate the need for extraneous vehicles to transport files. The files will remain in a fixed location unless absolutely mandatory to be in court. I will be an elected official who will lead by example, and be present in all courts on a rotating basis. I will be in the proverbial trenches with my employees.
Q. While other court clerk's offices nationwide have gone electronic, Cook County remains in the paper age. To the incumbent, why have you not converted to electronic as you promised in a Daily Herald endorsement interview the last time you were up for election? To the challenger, how could you convert to electronic given the historical fiscal constraints on the office? To both, by what month and year will you have the office running electronically? By "running electronically" we mean having all documents scanned electronically as a .pdf for ready viewing at public terminals located in the clerk's offices or courthouses?
With respect to the conversion to electronic filing and the present use of paper. Unfortunately, the public is not aware that the incumbent has rejected (for over 3 years) the offer of a free computerized system which when fully online will connect all 102 Illinois counties for information sharing. The technology is already in place to go completely paperless except for the maintaining of a paper record per Supreme Court rules. I believe that the present Clerk is refusing to go modern because as it stands the whole system is such a mess that it would take years to correct. I use the database regularly and can assure you that there is no date order of cases filed, for example. I would be happy to show you as well. It is an embarrassment to a county as large as Cook to still have carbon paper used in the courts to make duplicate official documents. The system currently in use needs to be excised and a modern system installed in its stead. I have been meeting with other Circuit Court Clerks statewide to obtain precise information. We cannot go completely electronic until the present mess in the online database is reviewed and corrected. There are not only misspellings but frequently unintelligible information. I cannot say when it will be done, but it should have been done by this time given the fact that many, if not most, of Illinois' counties are fully automated.
Q. Is the taking of political donations from employees and vendors proper? Why or why not?
The taking of political donations from employees or vendors is, to me, absolutely wrong and inexcusable. Under no circumstance should this occur, and I feel that it is an ethical breach. If not one which should be prosecuted in a court of law.
Q. Consistently, employees of the Daily Herald have found misfiled documents in court files, and have observed judges announce in court that dozens of files have been lost. What are you doing or will you do to secure public court files?
Lost files, unfortunately, are nothing new to me. I have worked in the system for many years and have tried myself to get the problem corrected. However, this could be obviated by hiring people who care about their jobs and have respect for the public. I would not allow this to happen, and am fully prepared to conduct a full audit of files to be sure that the contents are in place and everything is maintained properly per Supreme Court mandate. If the files are held in a central database and information is inserted online then they will always be available virtually. It seems that there is a culture of lassitude in the Clerk's Office which cascades down from the top. Clearly our present Clerk is not the right person to continue to be allowed to be in charge of the maintenance of court files. That is what the job is all about and she must be replaced by someone who is competent to perform the elective duties of that position. Prosecution is not out of the question for people who lose or fail to maintain control of court files.
Q. Often the clerk's office claims judiciary privilege as an exception to Freedom of Information requests. Excluding court files themselves, or personnel files of employees, should any information regarding the administration of the office itself - such as contracts, invoices, interoffice memos, staffing allocations, etc., - be exempt from public inspection? If so, be specific about what areas should remain secret and why.
With respect to the Freedom Of Information, anything which is conducted by an elected official should be made available to the public. The taxpayers have a right to know how their tax dollars are being spent, and in many cases wasted. With respect to personnel files, the person whose file is to be viewed should be given the chance to view it first to be certain that it is in order. The public's right to know should not be abridged. There are standards of ethics and behavior which are expected when one is hired to work for the government. In fact, a government employee should have the highest level of education, ability and knowledge possible.
Q. Please use this area to tell us about issues or your position on issues that we have not addressed that you believe voters should know about?
For a full explanation of my platform and positions on various issues you may view my Web site. There are so many problems in the Clerk's Office which the public has no idea about, including the fact that her upper management has been forced to sign "at will" waivers. Morale in that office is tainted by fear and loathing of Management which rules capriciously. There are no standards of behavior, language, decorum, etiquette or dress code. The present Clerk collects monies from her employees to allow them to dress casually at work. The money collected is ostensibly to pay for the annual picnic, but who is maintaining these funds? It looks terrible from the public's perspective to see ill dressed and unkempt people working, and often eating in the courtrooms and Clerks' Offices in full view of the public. There is absolutely nothing professional about that office, and as I see it's mandatory to get in there to clean house and make the office run correctly. It is the very least that the taxpayers of Cook County deserve and expect since it is they whose hard earned money pays for those services. Additionally, the public needs to know about the various and sundry lawsuits our present Clerk has pending against her in the courts. Who is paying for her defense? The taxpayers, because the State's Attorney's Office defends her. I could go into detail about each lawsuit since I've done the research, but suffice it to say we need Management who cares about the employees and the public. The public needs to demand the best from all government employees. I believe that the Clerk's Office should be depoliticized and that it should be run as a business instead of a personal piggy bank. If need be it should be outsourced to a private agency who will run it properly. It would be my pleasure to assist with that endeavor and help with the transition.