Central District of Illinois Chapter: Representing Vulnerable Individuals

About the Presenters

Kathryn Bettcher, Director of Victim Services at Prairie State Legal Services
Kathryn Bettcher graduated from the Northern Illinois University College of Law in 1991 and was licensed in Illinois that same year. Kathryn has worked for Prairie State Legal Services since 1991, first as a staff attorney. From 2005 until 2020 she served as managing attorney of the Fox Valley office. She is now Director of Family Advocacy and supervises family law litigation across Prairie State’s offices. Kathryn has concentrated her work in family law, and in particular in representation of victims of domestic violence. She has represented numerous clients in contested hearings and trials of family law matters. She also has served as supervisor of Prairie State’s domestic violence project located at the Kane County Courthouse. Kathryn is recognized as a leader among domestic violence advocates and attorneys in Kane County. She also has experience representing clients in other matters such as evictions and Social Security disability claims.

Teri Dimmick, Volunteer Court Appointed Special Advocate
Teri Dimmick is an attorney who has volunteered as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) in a child abuse and neglect case since the summer of 2018. She is currently one of seven pro se law clerks in the United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois managing all cases prisoners file challenging the conditions of their confinement. As a pro se law clerk, Teri has worked with all judges within the Central District, but now primarily works for Judge James Shadid. Before joining the Central District, she worked as an associate at Benassi & Benassi, P.C. and handled complex labor and employment litigation. Teri’s first job after graduating from the University of Illinois College of Law, magna cum laude, was as an Assistant McLean County State’s Attorney handling cases ranging from misdemeanors to child sex abuse, reckless homicide, murder, and a death penalty case. She also established the McLean County Domestic Violence Unit and was the first domestic violence prosecutor. Before becoming an attorney, Teri earned a Bachelor’s Degree in journalism from the University of Missouri in Columbia and was a news anchor for WHOI-TV in Peoria, Illinois.

The Honorable Sara Darrow, Chief United States District Judge of the Central District of Illinois
Judge Darrow has served as a district court judge in the Rock Island Division of the Central District of Illinois since 2011. She was nominated by President Barack Obama, on the recommendation of Senator Dick Durbin. She was appointed Chief Judge in 2019. Judge Darrow has served on the Judicial Conference Committee on the Administration of the Bankruptcy System since 2017 and in 2019, U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts appointed her Chair of the Committee. Prior to her judicial appointment, Judge Darrow worked at the United States Attorney’s Office in Rock Island, Illinois, for eight years where she prosecuted significant federal crimes involving firearms, drugs, gangs, fraud, money laundering, and corruption. She also coordinated the federal programs Project Safe Neighborhoods, designed to reduce gun violence, and Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force, designed to target major drug trafficking organizations. From 1999 to 2003, Judge Darrow worked in the Henry County State’s Attorney’s Office in Cambridge, Illinois, where she became First Assistant State’s Attorney and tried major felony, domestic violence, and child exploitation cases. Judge Darrow also worked as a low-income community organizer in Washington, DC, between college and law school. Judge Darrow received her undergraduate degree from Marquette University and her law degree from Saint Louis University School of Law. Judge Darrow lives in Rock Island with her husband Clarence Darrow, who serves as a Fourteenth Judicial Circuit Judge in Rock Island County. They have six children—three recent college graduate, two current college students, and one still living at home.

Marcy Jacobs, Third Judicial Circuit Family Violence Prevention Council and Oasis Women’s Center
Marcy Jacobs has a bachelor’s degree in Liberal Arts from Western Illinois University. She began at Oasis Women’s Center in Alton, Illinois as a volunteer in 1983. She has worked as a clerk, a night manager, a volunteer coordinator and now serves as Client Service Coordinator. She has had the privilege of working with thousands of victims of domestic violence over the years. Marcy is a licensed and certified Domestic Violence Professional with the State of Illinois.

Meg Robertie, Clerk of Court for the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois
Meg Robertie is the Clerk of Court for the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois and a graduate of Bates College, and St. Louis University School of Law. Upon graduation, she worked in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Illinois. In 1994, Meg joined the U.S. District Court in East St. Louis as a law clerk, working for district and magistrate judges. She later worked on the Court’s pro se team. In 2016, Meg became Counsel to the Court and Director of Operations. In 2018, she became Clerk of Court, while continuing her role as Counsel to Chief Judge Nancy J. Rosenstengel.

The Honorable Nancy J. Rosenstengel, Chief United States District Judge of the Southern District of Illinois

Judge Rosenstengel is the Chief United States District Judge in the Southern District of Illinois. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree, cum laude, in 1990 from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a Juris Doctorate, cum laude, in 1993 from Southern Illinois University School of Law. Before joining the bench, she was a member of the Illinois and Missouri bars, practicing litigation in state and federal courts in St. Louis, Missouri. She later served as a career law clerk to United States District Judge G. Patrick Murphy, and as Clerk of Court in the Southern District of Illinois, a high-level administrative position. On November 7, 2013, President Obama nominated Judge Rosenstengel to serve as a United States District Judge. The Senate voted 95-0 for final confirmation on May 8, 2014, and she received her judicial commission on May 12, 2014. Judge Rosenstengel is the first female district judge to serve in the Southern District of Illinois (and also was the first female to serve as Clerk of Court). In April 2019, Judge Rosenstengel became Chief Judge for the Southern District of Illinois. She is the Past President of the local chapter of the Federal Bar Association and serves on several committees for the Seventh Circuit United States Court of Appeals.

Phillip J. Voss, Madison County Assistant State’s Attorney, Domestic Violence Division
Phillip J. Voss is an Assistant State’s Attorney in the Madison County State’s Attorney’s Office. He is in the specialized domestic violence unit and a member of the new Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) Task Force. Phillip has trained many people regarding domestic violence and increasing victim and community safety, including law enforcement personnel with the Southern Illinois Law Enforcement Commission (SILEC).
Debra Ward, Counsel to the Clerk, United States District Court, Southern District of Illinois Debra Ward graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a bachelor’s degree in psychology and speech communications in 2001 and from Southern Illinois University School of Law in 2006. She has been working for the United States District Court for the Southern District of Illinois since 2009. During her employment with the court, she has served as a judicial law clerk, pro se staff attorney, and is currently the court attorney. Debra, along with Chief Judge Rosenstengel and Magistrate Judge Beatty, are spearheading a new alternative dispute program that will include pro se cases.

Shig Yasunaga, Clerk of Court for the United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois
Shig Yasunaga is the Clerk of Court for the United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois. Between August 2011, and August 2018, he served as a career law clerk to Senior District Court Judge Michael M. Mihm. Shig graduated magna cum laude from Southern Illinois University in May 2000. Upon graduation, he served as Judge Mihm’s term clerk. Between September 2001, and November 2008, Shig, as an associate general counsel, was involved in the handling of litigation and regulatory matters for Illinois Power Company and Ameren. In November 2008, he returned to his hometown as an associate university counsel for the University of Illinois, primarily working in employment and labor matters.

Registration

Registration for this event will close September 8, 2021.

Registration Fees

• Complimentary Registration for FBA Members & Nonmembers

How to Register

Register Online: https://www.ilcd.uscourts.gov/content/2021-power-act-program-registration 

Zoom meeting link and written materials will be distributed via email on 9/9/2021

If you have any questions regarding this program, please contact Melissa Schoenbein.