PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Chief Judge Evans assembles new leadership team for court’s Pretrial Services Division

Released On 07/08/2014

As the next step in his efforts to give increased focus and resources to pretrial services operations, Circuit Court of Cook County Chief Judge Timothy C. Evans today announced that he has appointed an assistant chief and two deputy chiefs to lead the  Pretrial Services Division of the Adult Probation Department. 

The three individuals selected by Chief Judge Evans, their titles and responsibilities are as follows:

·       Juan Hinojosa, Assistant Chief to oversee the entire Pretrial Services Division;

·       Connie Williams, Deputy Chief for Chicago pretrial services operations in Central Bond Court; and

·       Michael Callahan, Deputy Chief for suburban pretrial services operations in Skokie, Rolling Meadows, Maywood, Bridgeview and Markham.

Both Williams and Callahan will report to Assistant Chief Hinojosa. All appointments are effective immediately.

The appointments represent a restructuring of the Pretrial Services Division. Previously, the division had been headed by a single deputy chief, and employees had performed both pretrial and probation duties. Moving forward, the Pretrial Services Division will be staffed exclusively with designated pretrial personnel including managers, supervisors, and officers.

Biographical Information

Juan Hinojosa joined the Adult Probation Department in 1991. He held various positions, including pretrial services officer and probation officer, before being promoted to caseload supervision in 2003. He has served as a pretrial services supervisor for Central Bond Court from 2007 to the present. He received his B.A. in Communications from the University of Illinois at Chicago in 1992. Mr. Hinojosa is bilingual in Spanish and has taught GED and ESL classes for City Colleges of Chicago since 1993.

Connie Williams is a 26-year veteran of the Adult Probation Department. She served as a probation officer from 1988 to 1991 and has held numerous supervisory positions since 1991, most recently as pretrial services supervisor in the Markham courthouse from 2009 to the present. Ms. Williams received her B.A. in Elementary Education from Chicago State University in 1985 and is a certified counselor for mental illness, substance abuse and addiction.

Michael Callahan began with the Adult Probation Department as a probation officer in 1994. In 2000, he was promoted to supervisor. Most recently, he oversaw both probation and pretrial services operations in the Rolling Meadows courthouse just prior to his promotion to deputy chief. He received his B.A. in Criminal Justice from the University of Central Florida in 1992 and his M.S. in Criminal Justice from Chicago State University in 1997. Mr. Callahan served in the United States Army from 1986 to 1989. From 2001 to the present, he has served as an adjunct professor in criminological theory for the University of Phoenix.