Here in the Northern District of Illinois, we are excited about the technology that is
available to lawyers practicing in our courtrooms. Recognizing that the conduct
of trials can benefit from advances in video and other evidence presentation technologies,
the U.S. District Court is pleased to be able to provide equipment and presentation
capabilities in many of its existing and newly redesigned courtrooms. This equipment
will allow lawyers to present and display many types of evidence and testimony to
the judge and jury in clearer and more comprehensible ways. We are certain that this
new equipment will soon become an integral part of all attorneys’ trial strategies.
The new systems rely on the integration of video and digital display technology
to give the trial attorney the capability of:
- Visually emphasizing critical physical evidence on display monitors in front of
the judge and jury;
- Displaying video evidence through a computer desktop or laptop;
- Allowing a witness or counsel to demonstrate or annotate situations or scenarios
by using a fingertip directly on a monitor;
- Conducting live video presentations of witnesses who cannot be physically present
for a trial or hearing;
- Creating your own slide show presentation to enhance your arguments.
NOTE: Laptops hooked into DEPS should have display at XGA resolution(1024 X 768)
and 60 Hertz refresh rate to display properly on all monitors.
If you have any embedded videos on your laptop, some laptop maufacturers recommend a 72 Hertz refresh rate.
To reserve any of the mobile equipment, or if you are interested in a demonstration, or receiving training,
please contact Joe Novak at (312) 435-6045 or click here to e-mail me.
Requests for use of an evidence presentation system either through the use of the
court's equipment, or through an outside vendor, should be discussed in pre-trial
proceedings with the judge or with opposing counsel in as far
in advance of the trial date as possible.
In civil cases, reserving the court's equipment as soon as a trial date is known
is helpful in securing the dates needed. There are no fees for use of the court's
evidence presentation equipment. Outside vendors are welcome to set up their own
equipment if both parties agree. Duplicative systems will not be set up under any
circumstances. Defense counsel in criminal cases may utilize the equipment used
by the United States Attorney's Office; however, its use should be discussed with
the AUSA in advance.
Click on the following links for descriptions of the systems and components available.