Three top attorneys leaving DuPage state's attorney's office

Three high-ranking officials in the DuPage County State's Attorney's office have stepped down, with one accepting an appointment to serve on a state board, another retiring and the third resigning, authorities said Friday.

Spokesman Paul Darrah said First Assistant State's Attorney Joseph Ruggiero left Monday after being appointed by Gov. Bruce Rauner to serve on the Illinois Prisoner Review Board.

On Thursday, Tim Diamond, chief of the office's criminal bureau, submitted his retirement papers, and Mike Pawl, deputy chief of the criminal bureau's felony division, tendered his resignation.

Darrah would not comment further on personnel matters, so he could not say when Diamond's retirement and Pawl's resignation are effective.

The three departures come as the office is preparing to bring back former high-ranking prosecutor Bernie Murray, who retired in December 2014 after serving nearly six years with the state's attorney's office.

Darrah said Murray's first day back will be Oct. 22, and he will fill Ruggiero's position as first assistant state's attorney to the office's elected leader, State's Attorney Robert Berlin.

"He's one of the most experienced and respected prosecutors in the state of Illinois," Darrah said about Murray.

No matter the shifts, Darrah said the office is prepared to continue the legal fight for the county's interests.

"We have a deep well of talent here at the office," he said. "(These departures) won't affect the outstanding legal representation we provide to the citizens of DuPage County."

The retiring or resigning attorneys, however, leave with years of experience prosecuting cases.

Ruggiero joined the office in 1987. In 1991, he left to work in private practice, but returned in 1993, where he remained until his retirement effective Monday. He held positions such as deputy chief of the special prosecutions bureau and chief of the criminal bureau before becoming first assistant state's attorney in February 2015.

Diamond spent his entire legal career with the state's attorney's office, which he joined in 1998.

After starting as a law clerk, Diamond was named an assistant state's attorney in the traffic division in 1990. In 2007, he was promoted to deputy chief of the misdemeanor division, then in December 2011, he became deputy chief of special prosecutions.

When Ruggiero became first assistant, Diamond took his role as chief of the criminal bureau, where he finished his career with the office.

Pawl joined the office in 1998, eventually becoming deputy chief of the child protection division in February 2012, before later being named deputy chief of the felony division within the criminal bureau.