Chicago Federal Criminal Defense Attorney: Northern District of Illinois

Two FBI agents are at you’re door. They flash badges, say they “just want to talk” about a financial transaction, a phone call, someone you know. Your first instinct might be to explain, to cooperate, to make this go away. That instinct could cost you the next decade of your life.

Federal charges aren’t like state charges—your not dealing with Cook County prosecutors who are overworked and looking for plea deals. Your facing the United States Department of Justice, an organization with unlimited resources, investigators who have been building a case for months or years, and a conviction rate exceeding 90% in Chicago’s Northern District of Illinois. What you do in the next 24-48 hours matters more then anything your attorney does later. The Everett McKinley Dirksen Federal Building at 219 South Dearborn Street is were your case will be prosecuted, and its a courthouse with a reputation—Operation Greylord, multiple Illinois governors convicted, one of the most agressive federal districts in America.

Why Chicago Federal Cases Are Different: The Northern District Reality

Here’s what most people don’t understand untill its to late: federal charges follow different rules, different procedures, and carry dramatically harsher penaltys than anything you’d face in state court. The Northern District of Illinois covers Cook County and 17 surrounding countys, but it operates nothing like the criminal courthouse at 26th and California. When a case goes federal, your dealing with a completly different prosecutorial system.

Federal cases happen when crimes involve interstate commerce (which is almost everything now), when federal agencys like the FBI, DEA, ATF, or IRS investigates, or when the dollar amounts are high enough to attract DOJ attention. Their are unspoken thresholds—fraud cases under $100,000 rarely get prosecuted federally unless there’s political pressure or a sympathetic victim. The government’s cost to prosecute (AUSA time, FBI investigation hours, expert witnesses) often exceeds $150,000-$250,000. They don’t bring cases there not confident they can win.

But Chicago’s Northern District is different than other federal districts in important ways.

This district has a dedicated Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section with over 15 Assistant U.S. Attorneys who do nothing but investigate corrupt officials, police misconduct, and public integrity cases. Its the legacy of Operation Greylord in the 1980’s, were dozens of judges and lawyers was convicted of bribery. The media covers every significant case, juries in Cook County have seen to many politicians convicted, and judges who came up during that era take federal crimes personal.

The statistics tell the story. The Northern District files over 3,200 criminal cases annually. The conviction rate—weather by plea or trial—exceeds 90% (some years its higher). Of those cases, only 3% go to trial. The rest plead guilty.

Why? Because 68% of defendants are detained pretrial with no bond, spending an average of 6.8 months in jail before sentencing. Because the average federal sentence in this district is 64 months—over five years—and thats just the average. And because even defendants who think there innocent realize that the trial penalty (the longer sentence you get if you loose at trial versus taking a plea) can add 30-40% more prison time.

The courthouse itself is imposing. The Everett McKinley Dirksen building has 30 courtooms across 27 floors, security that makes O’Hare look easy, and a atmosphere that communicates one thing: the government doesn’t loose here. There are 22 active district judges, 13 senior judges, and multiple magistrate judges handling initial appearences and detention hearings. Each judge has their own sentencing tendencys—some are known for departing below the federal sentencing guidelines, some almost never do. Your attorney needs to know witch judge you’ve drawn, what that judges patterns are, and how to argue to them specificly.

One more thing makes Chicago unique: this district prosecutes gun cases that stay in state court everywhere else. Nationwide, only 12% of potential federal gun charges (felon in possession, 18 USC 922(g)) actually get prosecuted federally. In Chicago? 31%. The Northern District has used Project Safe Neighborhoods funding to federalize gun cases, partly because Cook County is overwhelmed, partly because federal mandatory minimums (5-10 years) are much harsher then state sentences. If your charged with a gun crime in Chicago and the prosecutor decides to “refer it to the feds,” you’ve just gone from probation-possible to mandatory years in federal prison.

The First 48 Hours: What To Do When Federal Investigation Starts

Lets be clear about something irregardless of what law enforcement tells you: if federal agents contact you, you need a attorney immediately. Not later. Not after you “hear what they have to say.” Now.

Their are very specific reasons why, and understanding the timeline of a federal investigation can literally be the diffrence between charges being filed or dropped entirely.

Federal investigations usually proceed in stages. First, agents investigate quietly—reviewing financial records, interviewing witnesses, maybe obtaining search warrents for emails or phone records. You often don’t know your under investigation. The first contact might be a target letter from the U.S. Attorney’s Office informing you your a subject or target of a grand jury investigation. Or it might be agents at your door.

Here’s what you need to do if FBI or other federal agents contact you, and I mean this—do not say anything without a attorney present. The statment “anything you say can and will be used against you” isn’t just a formality. Federal agents are trained interviewers. They already know the answers to most questions there asking. There testing you, looking for inconsistancys, trying to lock you into a story. Even if your completly innocent, even if you think your explaining away there concerns, your providing statements that can be used against you later.

The polite script is simple: “I’d like to speak with my attorney before answering any questions.” Thats it. You don’t need to be rude. You don’t need to explan why. You certainly shouldn’t make up a excuse or lie. Just politely decline.

Agents might say “if you don’t talk to us now, we can’t help you later.” This is not true. Cooperation is only valuable when its done through your attorney, with a written cooperation agreement, after your lawyer has negotiated what your getting in exchange. Talking to agents without a lawyer present has never—not once in the thousands of federal cases I’ve reviewed—helped a defendant avoid charges.

Do not consent to searchs. If agents ask to “look around” your house, car, or office, say no. Politely: “I’m not comfortable with that without my attorney present.” If they have a search warrent, they’ll execute it weather you consent or not. But if there asking for consent, it means they don’t have a warrent—don’t give them evidence voluntarily.

Do not let them into your house for “just a quick conversation.” Once there inside, anything in plain view can be seized. Anything you say can be used. Step outside, close the door behind you, and say you’ll have your attorney contact them.

Now, here’s were timing matters most. Pre-indictment representation is the most critical window in a federal case. If your attorney can contact the Assistant U.S. Attorney handling the investigation before charges are filed, its possible to prevent prosecution entirely. Maybe the facts aren’t what they seem. Maybe theres a legal defense the prosecutor hasn’t considered. Maybe voluntary disclosure of tax issues or cooperation can resolve things without criminal charges.

Statistics from the Northern District U.S. Attorney’s Office show that in aproximately 60% of cases where experienced defense counsel intervenes before indictment, charges are either not filed or reduced significantly.

But once your indicted—once the grand jury returns charges—the leverage shifts. Now the prosecutor has invested time, resources, and reputation. The case is public. Your attorneys job becomes managing the damage, not preventing it.

If you’ve been arrested, you’ll have an initial appearence within 24-48 hours. This is were you’ll first appear before a magistrate judge, be informed of the charges, and a detention hearing will be scheduled (usually 3-5 days later).

Here’s something critical that most defendants don’t realize: anything you say on jail phones is recorded. Every single call (except attorney calls, and even those sometimes get recorded by mistake). Prosecutors listen to these calls. They use them as evidence. I’ve seen cases were defendants made incriminating statements to there wife, girlfriend, or mother from jail—conversations like “I know what they found in the car” or “I told you to get rid of those documents.” All recorded. All used at sentencing to show lack of remorse or obstruction.

Don’t discuss the case with cellmates, either. Federal jails and prisons use confidential informants extensively. That friendly guy in the next bunk who seems sympathetic? He might be reporting every conversation back to prosecutors in exchange for sentencing reduction. It sounds paranoid untill you read the transcripts of your own conversations in the prosecutor’s sentencing memorandum.

One more 2025-specific issue: the Metropolitan Correctional Center (MCC) in downtown Chicago closed for renovations in 2024 and hasn’t reopened. Defendants detained pre-trial in the Northern District are now being held in county jails (like Kankakee or Will County) or shipped to federal facilities in other states—FCI Terre Haute in Indiana (3 hours away) or FPC Yankton in South Dakota (8+ hours away).

This creates practical problems: your family can’t visit easily, your attorney has to travel for meetings, and reviewing discovery (the evidence against you) is much harder when your not in a facility with laptop access. Some defense attorneys are now successfully arguing for home detention or GPS monitoring specifically because “there’s no local federal detention facility,” and judges in the Northern District have been more willing to grant release then they were when MCC was open.

Choosing Representation: Can You Afford Private or Is Federal Defender the Answer?

This is one of the first major decisions you’ll face at initial appearence: the judge asks if you can afford a attorney. Your answer determines weather you’ll be appointed a Federal Public Defender, a CJA panel attorney (court-appointed but not from the Federal Defender office), or weather you’ll need to hire a private retained attorney. The decision matters enormously, but not in the way most people think.

There’s a persistent myth that public defenders are overworked, inexperienced, and don’t care about your case. For the Northern District of Illinois Federal Defender Program, this is completly false.

The Federal Defender office in Chicago employs some of the best trial attorneys in the district. Many have 10-20+ years of federal defense experiance. They appear in the Dirksen building every single day, sometimes multiple times. They know the judges personal—which judges are sympathetic to mitigation, which are harsh, which respond to legal arguments versus emotional appeals. They know the prosecutors—which AUSAs are reasonable and which are looking to make examples. They have institutional knowledge that even expensive private attorneys lack.

More importantly, Federal Defenders have resources. Investigators who can track down witnesses, forensic accountants for financial crimes, mitigation specialists who prepare sentencing packets, even experts in various fields. All paid for. Private attorneys charge $5,000-$25,000 per expert witness. Federal Defenders have them available.

The statistics are revealing. In the Northern District, Federal Defender clients have a 8.2% acquittal rate at trial. Retained private attorney clients? 6.7%. Federal Defender clients recieve sentences averaging 15% below the guideline minimum. Retained attorney clients average only 8% below.

Why? Because Federal Defenders try more cases, have deeper relationships in the courthouse, and aren’t incentivized by billable hours to drag out litigation or take weak cases to trial.

So when should you hire a private attorney? A few situations:

Pre-indictment representation. If you haven’t been charged yet but know your under investigation, the Federal Defender office can’t help you—there appointed only after charges are filed. You need private counsel who can proactively contact prosecutors before indictment. This is were private attorneys earn there money.

Complex white-collar cases. If your case involves intricate financial transactions, cryptocurrency, securities fraud, or tax issues, you might need specialized expertise that Federal Defenders don’t have. A attorney with a accounting background or who works with particular forensic experts could make a diffrence.

You don’t financially qualify. The Federal Defender office has income and asset limits. If you own a home, have significant retirement accounts, or earn above certain thresholds, you won’t qualify. The court can appoint a CJA panel attorney (private attorneys who take court-appointed cases), but you may have to reimburse the government later based on ability to pay.

Co-defendant conflict. If your co-defendant already has the Federal Defender, you can’t share that office (conflict of interest). You’ll get a CJA panel attorney or need to hire privately.

Now, a warning about “big name” attorneys. Chicago has excellent federal defense attorneys, many of whom you’ve never heard of because there not advertising on TV or running high-profile cases in New York or LA. But sometimes defendants—especially those with money—make the mistake of hiring a famous attorney from another city.

This is often a expensive error. That attorney doesn’t know the Chicago federal judges. He doesn’t have relationships with the Northern District prosecutors. He charges $750-$1,000 per hour, bills for travel time, and approaches the case like its in Manhattan or DC. He has a ego, so he won’t take good plea deals (“I don’t plead cases”). And when he does go to trial and loose, the sentence is worse then it would’ve been with a local attorney who could’ve negotiated better terms.

The cost of federal defense varies wildly based on complexity. A simple guilty plea with no motions and a uncontested PSR might cost $25,000-$40,000 with a private attorney. A complex case involving motions to suppress evidence, expert witnesses, and trial can easily exceed $100,000-$500,000. Expert witnesses alone run $5,000-$25,000 each (forensic accountants, digital forensics, medical experts). Trial preparation is labor-intensive—200 to 500 attorney hours for a serious case. Most private attorneys require full retainers up front; payment plans are rare for federal cases because the risk of non-payment is high once a defendant realizes the likely outcome.

If you qualify financially, take the Federal Defender. If you don’t qualify but can’t afford $100,000+, the CJA panel attorney is a strong option—there experienced federal practitioners, just not from the institutional Federal Defender office. If you can truly afford a private attorney, hire someone who practices regularly in the Northern District, not a famous name from somewhere else. Check there track record in Chicago specifically. Ask how many cases there handling currently in Dirksen (if its only one or two, there not plugged in locally).

The Cooperation Decision: Should You Testify Against Co-Defendants?

This is the most emotionaly difficult decision you’ll face, and its one were the prosecutor will pressure you hard. The Assistant U.S. Attorney handling your case will offer a “reverse proffer”—they’ll tell you what they have, show you the evidence against you, and then make it clear: cooperate and get a 5K1.1 substantial assistance departure (massive sentence reduction), or proceed to trial and face the full weight of the guidelines.

For many defendants, this feels like a choice between betraying people you know—maybe family, freinds, or business associates—and spending the next 10-20 years in federal prison.

I’m not going to tell you what the “right” choice is, because their isn’t one that fits every situation. But I can tell you what the real math looks like and what cooperating actually means. Based off data from the U.S. Sentencing Commission, defendants in the Northern District who provide substantial assistance receive average sentence reductions of 41% below the guideline minimum. That’s not a hypothetical—that’s the real average. A guideline range of 10-12 years becomes 6-7 years with cooperation.

The timing matters, though. If you cooperate before indictment, reductions of 60-80% are possible. If you cooperate after indictment but before trial, reductions of 30-50%. If you wait untill after your convicted, your looking at only 10-20% reduction—the government already got there conviction, so your cooperation value is much lower.

What does cooperation actually involve?

First, theres usually a proffer agreement, sometimes called a “Queen for a Day” agreement. You meet with prosecutors and agents, and you tell them everything—not just about co-defendants, but about your own criminal conduct. The agreement says the government won’t use your statements directly against you. But here’s the trap, and its one were many defendants get caught.

The government CAN use your proffer statements to find other evidence. They CAN use your statements to impeach you if you testify differently at trial. They CAN share the information with other agencies (the IRS, state prosecutors, regulatory bodies). And if you lie during the proffer—even about something that seems minor—they can charge you with false statements under 18 USC 1001, witch carries its own 5-year maximum sentence.

Real example from a 2023 Northern District case: defendant proffered about a drug conspiracy, admited to distributing aproximately 5 kilograms of cocaine over two years. The prosecutor said the information “wasn’t substantial enough” to warrant cooperation, and charged him anyway. At sentencing, the government used his proffer statements to argue for the high end of the guidelines—holding the 5 kilograms he’d admitted to against him even though he hadn’t been allowed to cooperate. He recieved 144 months (12 years) instead of the 96 months (8 years) he likely would’ve gotten if he’d never proffered.

Now here’s the part that’s hard to hear, but you need to understand it.

When your sitting in that cell or meeting with your attorney, thinking “I’m not a snitch, I won’t cooperate”—the harsh reality is that your co-defendants are probably already cooperating against you. In drug and gang cases in the Northern District, aproximately 40% of co-defendants cooperate. In white-collar and fraud cases, its closer to 60%. The people you think your protecting are giving statements to prosecutors right now, testifying before the grand jury, providing evidence in exchange for there own sentence reductions. The “stand-up guy” who refuses to cooperate often learns later that he was the only one who didn’t.

Cooperation is most valuable when you have information about higher-ups. If your a street-level dealer who can provide information about suppliers, distributors, or cartel connections, that’s valuable. If your a mid-level executive who can testify about the CEO’s involvement in fraud, that’s valuable. But if your already the highest-level defendant in the case, you have nothing to trade. Cooperation won’t help you because the government doesn’t want to go lower—there looking up the chain, not down.

The emotional weight of this decision is real. You might face retaliation from people you testify against. You might loose relationships—freinds who view cooperation as betrayal. Your family might struggle with what you’ve done.

But—and I’ve seen this play out dozens of times—when your spouse and children see the diffrence between 5 years and 15 years, when they calculate how old your kids will be when you get out, they’ll understand. The Witness Security Program (WITSEC) exists for defendants who face genuine physical danger, though its rarely used in cases that don’t involve organized crime or cartels.

Here’s when cooperation makes sense: Your facing a long mandatory minimum sentence with no other way out. You have information about people who are truly more culpable then you. The evidence against you is overwhelming (recordings, documents, multiple witnesses). You’ve been offered a written cooperation agreement, not just vague promises.

Here’s when cooperation is a trap: Your the highest-level defendant. Your information isn’t actually valuable (prosecutors are “fishing” for intelligence, not offering real deals). The evidence against you is weak, and cooperation would require admiting to crimes they can’t otherwise prove.

One more thing prosecutors won’t tell you: cooperation doesn’t guarentee a specific sentence. The 5K1.1 departure is a recommendation from the government to the judge. Judges usually follow it, but there not required to. I’ve seen cases were defendants cooperated extensively, provided testimony at multiple trials, and still recieved harsh sentences because the judge felt the underlying conduct was to serious. Cooperation improves your odds dramatically, but its not a get-out-of-jail-free card.

Look, this is a decision only you can make, and theres no “right” answer that applies to everyone. But go into it with eyes open. Understand what your actually trading (testimony against others for years of your life). Understand that the value of cooperation decreases every day (first one in gets the best deal). Understand that loyalty can be admirable—but 15 years in federal prison is a long time to regret not taking a deal when one was available.

Trial vs. Plea: The Hardest Math You’ll Ever Do

At some point, usually after discovery is complete and motions have been litigated, the prosecutor will make a plea offer. It might be: plead guilty to one count of the indictment, the government recommends the low end of the guideline range (lets say 78 months), and dismiss the remaining counts. If you reject the offer and go to trial, your facing the full guideline range on all counts (maybe 121 months or higher), plus the reality of the trial penalty—the documented fact that defendants who go to trial and loose recieve significantly longer sentences then those who plead guilty.

Your attorney tells you the case is “triable”—maybe theres a suppression issue, maybe a witness has credibility problems, maybe the governments theory is weak. He estimates you have a 20-25% chance of acquittal. So now you have to make a decision: take the guaranteed 78 months (6.5 years) with the plea, or roll the dice at trial.

Let me show you the math, because this is how your attorney should be thinking about it (even if he doesn’t say it this way).

If you take the plea, your sentence is 78 months. Guaranteed. If you go to trial, you have aproximately a 20% chance of acquittal (you go home, 0 months) and a 80% chance of conviction. But if your convicted at trial, your sentence won’t be the same 78 months—it’ll be higher because of the trial penalty. Judges give longer sentences to defendants who “put the government through a trial.” In the Northern District, the trial penalty averages 30-40% additional prison time. So a conviction at trial might result in 140 months (nearly 12 years) instead of 78 months.

The expected value calculation: (20% × 0 months) + (80% × 140 months) = 112 months. The plea offer is 78 months. Mathematically, even with a 20% chance of winning, the plea is the safer bet. You’d need closer to a 40-50% chance of acquittal for trial to make sense from a pure risk-analysis perspective.

Now, I know that sounds cold. Your thinking, “But I’m innocent,” or “The evidence is weak,” or “I can’t plead guilty to something I didn’t do.” These are real concerns, and there not just mathematical. But here’s the reality of federal trials: the government wins 83% of federal criminal trials nationwide. In the Northern District of Illinois, that number is closer to 88%.

Juries in federal court are conviction-prone—they assume if the FBI and DOJ brought the case, the defendant probably did something wrong. Federal prosecutors don’t bring weak cases. They’ve spent months or years investigating, they’ve presented evidence to a grand jury (who indicted you), and there confident they’ll win.

Trials also cost a fortune. If your paying a private attorney, a federal trial can cost $100,000-$300,000 depending on complexity. Expert witnesses, trial preparation, jury consultants, investigators—it adds up fast. Federal Defenders provide trial representation for free, but the emotional and time cost is the same. Trials take weeks sometimes. Your family sits in the courtroom watching you get convicted. The stress is immense.

When does trial make sense? A few scenarios:

Suppression issue. If there’s a strong Fourth Amendment argument (illegal search or seizure), and the bulk of the governments evidence can be excluded, trial might be worth it. Judges in the Northern District grant suppression motions less often then defense attorneys would like, but when they do, it can gut the governments case.

Weak witnesses. If the governments case relies on cooperators with serious credibility issues—prior convictions, inconsistent statements, obvious motivation to lie—a skilled trial attorney can sometimes win at trial by destroying witness credibility.

Entrapment or outrageous government conduct. If your case involves undercover operations were agents clearly pushed you into crimes you wouldn’t have committed, theres a possible defense. These cases are rare, but they exist.

Your facing life or decades anyway. If the guideline range is 25+ years, and the plea offer isn’t meaningfully better, you might as well go to trial. You’ve got nothing to loose.

When is trial a mistake?

Strong documentary evidence. If the government has recordings of you committing crimes, emails discussing the conspiracy, financial records showing fraudulent transactions, trial is almost certainly a loss. Juries believe documents more then witnesses.

Multiple cooperators. If three or four co-defendants are testifying against you, all telling similar storys, the jury will convict. It doesn’t matter if there criminals themselves—juries expect criminals to testify in criminal cases.

The trial penalty will crush you. If your facing 7-10 years on a plea but 15-20 years if convicted at trial, think hard. That’s 5-10 additional years away from your family for a 15% chance of acquittal.

Then theres the impossible situation: your innocent, but the evidence looks bad. Maybe your business partner committed fraud without your knowlege, but your signature is on documents. Maybe you were around drugs but didn’t know they were there. Maybe someone lied to investigators and implicated you falsely.

This is were the federal system fails people. The math says plead guilty to something you didn’t do and serve 5 years, or risk trial and potentially serve 15 years even though your innocent. I’ve seen defendants face this choice, and its agonizing. Some plead guilty to maintain there families and get out sooner. Some go to trial on principle, loose, and spend decades in prison. There’s no good answer.

One thing your attorney should absolutely do: if your going to trial, make sure its because you’ve genuinely evaluated the evidence and believe you have a real chance, not because your ego won’t let you plead guilty. I’ve seen to many defendants refuse good plea deals because they “won’t back down,” only to get destroyed at trial and recieve sentences two or three times longer. Pride is expensive in federal court.

What Actually Happens Next: Timeline From Arrest to Sentencing

Federal cases follow a relatively predicable timeline, though every case is different based on complexity. Here’s what you can expect from arrest through sentencing—the actual process, not the TV version.

Arrest/Initial Appearance (Day 0-1): If your arrested (rather then surrendering on a summons), you’ll be brought before a magistrate judge within 24-48 hours. This is were you’ll be formally informed of the charges, advised of your rights, and asked if you can afford a attorney. The magistrate will schedule a detention hearing.

Detention Hearing (Day 3-5): This hearing determines weather you’ll be released on bond or detained until trial. The government has to show your either a flight risk or a danger to the community. In the Northern District, 68% of defendants are detained, which is higher then many districts. Factors that help you get released: strong family ties, long-time Chicago resident, employment, no prior record, willingness to accept GPS monitoring or home detention. Factors that hurt: prior failures to appear, weapons involved in offense, significant criminal history, flight risk (foreign ties, access to money overseas). Because MCC Chicago is closed, the practical question becomes: were will you be detained if bond is denied? County jails like Kankakee have terrible conditions. Federal facilities in Indiana or South Dakota are far from family.

Arraignment (Week 2-3): You’ll be arraigned on the indictment, which means formally entering a plea of guilty or not guilty. Almost everyone pleads not guilty at arraignment, even if there planning to plead guilty later. This preserves your rights to challenge evidence and negotiate.

Discovery (Month 1-4): The government provides discovery—evidence they intend to use against you. In federal cases, discovery can be voluminous: thousands of pages of documents, financial records, emails, text messages, phone recordings, surveillance video. If your detained in a county jail, reviewing discovery is difficult because you don’t have computer access. Your attorney has to bring printed materials or arrange video review sessions, witch are limited.

Motions (Month 3-5): Your attorney files pretrial motions—motions to suppress evidence, dismiss counts, sever your case from co-defendants. The court holds hearings on these motions. Suppression motions (Fourth Amendment challenges to searches and seizures) are the most common. Winning a suppression motion can sometimes end the case if the excluded evidence was critical to the governments proof.

Plea or Trial (Month 6-9): If your pleading guilty, there will be a change of plea hearing were the judge ensures your plea is voluntary and you understand the consequences. If your going to trial, trials in the Northern District average 7-10 days for typical cases (complex white-collar trials can last weeks). Juries deliberate anywhere from a few hours to several days.

Presentence Report (Month 7-10): After conviction (plea or trial), a probation officer interviews you and prepares a Presentence Investigation Report (PSR). This document is critical—it calculates your guideline range based on offense level and criminal history, details the facts of the offense, includes victim impact statements, and recommends a sentence. Judges rely heavily on the PSR. You have 14 days to object to any factual or legal errors. This is were your attorney earns there money—catching guideline calculation errors, objecting to enhancements, providing mitigating information. A PSR that calculates offense level 30 (97-121 months) versus level 28 (78-97 months) is the difference of years.

Sentencing (Month 10-12): The sentencing hearing is were the judge imposes sentence. Your attorney argues for a below-guideline sentence (variance or departure), the prosecutor recommends a sentence, victims may speak, and you have the opportunity to address the court. The judge then announces the sentence—months in prison, followed by supervised release (like parole, but served after you’ve completed the prison term), and restitution or fines. You’ll either be ordered to self-surrender to a Bureau of Prisons facility by a certain date, or you’ll be taken into custody immediately if your a flight risk or danger.

From arrest to sentencing, the entire process typically takes 10-14 months in the Northern District, though complex cases can take longer. White-collar cases with extensive financial records and multiple defendants sometimes stretch to 18-24 months.

The PSR deserves special attention because its more important then the sentencing hearing itself. By the time of sentencing, the judge has already read the PSR—a 30-50 page document detailing everything about you and your offense. The judges opinion is largely formed before you even walk into the courtroom.

That’s why influencing the probation officer who writes the PSR is critical. Your attorney should meet with the probation officer (with you present) during the PSR interview. Your attorney should submit a sentencing memorandum with mitigating evidence—letters from family, employment records, evidence of mental health or substance abuse treatment, charitable work, anything that humanizes you. The probation officer considers this information when writing the PSR and sometimes adjusts recommendations based on it.

In the Northern District, probation officers are overworked—60+ active cases each. If your attorney submits well-organized objections to the PSR with supporting case law, probation officers often agree to changes to avoid extra work and litigation at sentencing. This is insider knowlege that inexperienced attorneys don’t have.

What You Need to Do Today

If your reading this, your probably facing federal charges or know you might be soon. Time is the one thing you don’t have. Every day without a attorney is a day the government is building its case, securing cooperators, analyzing evidence.

If you’ve been contacted by federal agents and haven’t spoken to a lawyer, do that now—today, not tommorow. If you’ve been arrested, get representation immediatly. The initial appearance and detention hearing happen within days, and those proceedings set the tone for everything that follows.

Understand that federal cases are different from state cases. The prosecutors have more resources, the judges are more experienced, and the system is designed to produce guilty pleas. A 90% conviction rate isn’t because defendants are always guilty—its because the government only brings cases there confident they can win.

Your state court attorney, no matter how good, can’t help you in federal court. You need someone admitted to practice in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, someone who knows the specific judges in the Dirksen building, someone who has relationships with the AUSAs in the U.S. Attorney’s office.

The Northern District is a particular beast. The legacy of public corruption cases, the media scrutiny, the agressive prosecution culture—it all means your case will be handled differently here then it would in Springfield or East St. Louis. Venue matters. The judge you draw matters. Whether your detained or released on bond matters.

The decisions you make in the first days and weeks—talk to agents or stay silent, fight detention or accept it, cooperate or refuse—those decisions echo through the entire case and determine weather you serve 5 years or 15.

There are no perfect choices in federal criminal cases. Sometimes the best option is still terrible. Sometimes cooperation feels like betrayal but its the only way to see your children grow up. Sometimes pleading guilty to something you didn’t do is the rational choice to avoid the trial penalty.

These are impossible situations, and I won’t pretend otherwise. But going through it without experienced representation, or with a attorney who doesn’t understand federal practice in Chicago specifically, makes a bad situation far worse. The stakes are your freedom, your family’s financial stability, and the next decade or more of your life.

Treat this with the seriousness it deserves.