Winnebago County state’s attorney sees mixed results in 2024 prosecutions report

ROCKFORD, Ill. (WTVO) — Winnebago County State’s Attorney J. Hanley shared a 2024 Year in Review of the prosecutions undertaken by his office, touting accomplishments and acknowledging room for improvement.

According to data released on Tuesday, the State’s Attorney’s Office secured a conviction rate in 71% of murder cases in 2024, down from a four-year average of 77%.

But, it reported a 79% success rate in domestic violence convictions and over 90% in firearms cases.

Hanley said he would be happy to maintain those numbers going into 2025, but said he has added a few other goals, as well.

“One, I’d be announcing a conviction in the Duke Webb case. Maybe even in the Soto case. There’s probably a couple of other high-profile things that aren’t coming to mind. But I’d have 2 or 3 of those, ones that the community continues to follow, that have been languishing. We’ve got to get a conviction in those,” he said.

Hanley also said he wanted to secure at least five charges for human trafficking.