New IFVCC Co-Chair

Hon. Jennifer Clifford has been an Associate Judge for the 17th Judicial Circuit since December of 2018. Since September 2019, she has been assigned to the Criminal Division and handles the intimate partner domestic violence criminal felony and misdemeanor cases as well as criminal orders of protection. Prior to being appointed to the bench, Judge Clifford worked as a prosecutor in the Winnebago County State’s Attorney’s Office for over 20 years.

Judge Clifford is the Chair of the Illinois Supreme Court Committee on Domestic Violence and Human Trafficking. She is also Chair of the 17th Judicial Circuit Family Violence Coordinating Council. Judge Clifford has presented at trainings on the Dynamics of Domestic Violence, Criminal Orders of Protection, and Marsy’s Law and the Rights of Crime Victims. She graduated from the University of Illinois with a double major in English and Rhetoric and from the University of Illinois College of Law.

The Hon. Joseph G. McGraw retired as the co-chairperson of the Illinois Family Violence Coordinating Council Steering Committee in July 2023. Judge McGraw was appointed as a Circuit Judge by the Illinois Supreme Court in January 2002 and was elected to his position in November 2002. He served as Chief Judge of the Seventeenth Judicial Circuit Court from January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2017. In addition to this appointment, Judge McGraw presided over a specialized gun offense felony caseload and oversaw the PATH Court (a multidisciplinary court response to human trafficking).

It was an honor to have Judge McGraw serve as co-chair; his service and dedication has been greatly appreciated.

The Illinois Family Violence Coordinating Councils, at both the state and local/circuit levels, provide a forum to improve the institutional, professional and community response to family violence including intimate partner abuse, child abuse, teen dating violence, and abuse against older adults and people with disabilities. Councils provide professional education and prevention; coordinate interventions and services for victims and perpetrators; and contribute to both the improvement of the legal system and the administration of justice.