Public Defender Ed Light recently passed away:
http://www.rrstar.com/news/20161010/obituary-ed-light-was-defendants-best-friend
The public generally does not hear much from the Winnebago County Public Defender’s office. Presumably that is because your typical public defender is over-worked and does not have enough time to adequately defend the number of defendants he or she is assigned to represent much less to defend or promote themselves. The public defender’s office also does not get anywhere near the amount of money budgeted to it that the State’s Attorney’s office gets every year to prosecute people. In our opinion, this last fact is a crime because the inadequate and unequal availability of money and resources to represent defendants in Winnebago County is creating a class of incarcerated and disenfranchised felons in our community who are denied opportunity to succeed which affects us all.
That Ed Light deliberately chose to work hard for decades on behalf of individuals the community is mostly too ready to condemn is noteworthy. We did not know Ed Light personally, but knew of his reputation which extended outside of Rockford. He set examples in representation and behavior which we dearly wish other local public defenders would now emulate.
RichardWanke.Com 