Mike Nerheim: Candidate Profile

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Note: Answers provided have not been edited for grammar, misspellings or typos. In some instances, candidate claims that could not be immediately verified have been omitted. Jump to:BioQA Bio City: GurneeWebsite: www.mikenerheim.comTwitter: Candidate did not respond.Facebook: Candidate did not respond.Office sought: Lake County State's Attorney Age: 43Family: Married with three childrenOccupation: Lake County State's AttorneyEducation: Juris Doctor, Cum Laude, The John Marshall Law School, Chicago, 2000. Bachelor of Science, double major: Criminal Justice and Psychology, Winona State University, Winona, Minnesota, 1996.Civic involvement: I chair the Lake County Opioid Initiative, Lake County Domestic Violence Council, Lake County Sexual Assault Council and Lake County Juvenile Justice Council. Appointed as Co-Chairman of the Suburban Anti-Heroin Task Force and Co-Chair the Executive Committee for Fight Crime: Invest in Kids Illinois. I am a member of the National Commission on Forensic Science Sub-Committee on Human Factors in Washington, D.C., Lake County After School Coalition and Lake County Underage Drinking and Drug Prevention Task Force. I am the Judge Advocate, Lake County Council of the Navy League of the United States and serve as Teen Court Judge.+Elected offices held: Lake County State's Attorney from December 2012 to Present.Questions Answers Why are you running for this office? If you are running for re-election, is there an important project you want to implement? If you are a challenger, is there are particular issue that motivates you? Please explain.I've proven I can get the job done bringing all of my first term promises to fruition, but there's much more to do as we make Lake County a safer place to live, work and raise a family. My goals:-Continuing efforts to uncover old cases where someone was wrongfully convicted, while developing and implementing protocols to prevent wrongful convictions.-Continuing to combat the growing heroin and opiate epidemic through aggressive prosecution of drug traffickers combined with a thoughtful approach to ensuring those who struggle with the disease of addiction receive treatment.Are you concerned about police and prosecutors' treatment of black suspects in Lake County? What would you change?I am committed to ensuring every person is treated fairly under the law. Our mission is to seek justice for all. I am well aware of the strained relationship between some members of our minority communities and law enforcement, as well as a lack of trust in the criminal justice system. I am working hard to help bridge the two sides, participating in forums across the county designed to promote awareness and understanding. The workings of my office are more transparent thanks to the help of the Citizen's Advisory Board I created comprised of local African American and Latino leaders.Do you believe the state's attorney's office is biased toward police in cases of possible police misconduct? What evidence supports your opinion? If yes, how would you eliminate that bias?No. While we work with our law enforcement partners on a daily basis, we are completely independent from them. My office holds everybody to the same legal standard. When police officers have violated the law, my office has prosecuted them. My felony review division screens and rejects over a thousand cases per year where we have met with law enforcement and do not believe that we have sufficient evidence to charge a crime.What aspects of the office do you think needs improvement? Be specific. How would you address that need?I realigned the State's Attorney's Office to focus on specialized areas allowing prosecutors to become more highly trained and increasing effectiveness, including a Gang Narcotics Unit, Specialized Victims Unit, Cyber/White Collar Crime Unit, Domestic Violence Unit, and Special Investigations Unit. To help restore confidence in the State's Attorney's Office, I established the independent Case Review Panel and Citizen's Advisory Board, as well as streamlined the felony review process. I also brought change and diversity to the office with 21% of all current Assistant State's Attorneys being hired by me. 24% were diversity hires and 62% were diversity and/or female hires.Please list any elected office you've ever run for and what the result of that election was. Have you ever been appointed to fill an unexpired term?When I was elected State's Attorney in 2012, it was the first time I had run for office and I ran a grassroots campaign of truth, integrity and hard work...focused on important issues, fresh ideas and bold reforms. I was then and am proud today to accept the support of such a diverse community of Republicans, Democrats and Independent voters - representing citizens, civic and community leaders, the legal community and law enforcement. I am beholden to no person, group, party or special interest. My family is my campaign team, and my chairman is a lawyer in private practice. No.What other issues, if any, are important to you as a candidate for this office?In addition to Lake County's leading diversion programs such as Mental Health, Drug, and Veterans Courts, my Alternative Prosecution Program allows first-time non-violent offenders an opportunity to take responsibility for their criminal action, pay their debt to society while also giving them a new opening to seek employment and become productive members of their community. The best way to ensure someone maintains a productive life and a chance at employment is to keep that person out of the criminal justice system if possible.I would like to broaden my efforts to curb crime by helping ex-offenders find meaningful jobs.Please name one current leader who most inspires you.Chelsea Laliberte. After losing her brother to a heroin overdose, she formed a nationally recognized organization dedicated to preventing families from losing a loved one.What is the biggest lesson you learned at home growing up?The importance of family, hard work, and treating everybody with respect.If life gave you one do-over, what would you spend it on?I regret not serving in the military.What was your favorite subject in school and how did it help you in later life?History. We can all learn from the mistakes and successes of our past. I am also motivated and inspired by many historical leaders.If you could give your children only one piece of advice, what would it be?Treat people how you want to be treated.