Chicago Criminal Lawyer Blog
What Illinois Law Says and Why Silence Is Often the Smartest Defense
Every week in Chicago courtrooms—at 26th and California, in Skokie, or Rolling Meadows—defendants sit silently while prosecutors present their case. And many wonder whether that silence helps them or hurts them in the eyes of the judge or jury. Some are accused of DUI, others face drug charges, retail theft, or violent crimes. Regardless of the charge, one concern keeps coming up: “Will my silence make me look guilty?”
The short answer is no—but the way your silence is framed and the timing of it matters deeply under Illinois law.
