Waukegan attorney enters race for judge
Waukegan attorney Jay Ukena will run for the Democratic nomination for circuit judge in the spring primary.
Ukena, a lawyer for 27 years, announced he will seek the right to face Circuit Judge George Bridges for the subcircuit one post in the fall election.
A graduate of Lake Forest College and the John Marshall Law School, Ukena is presently general counsel for the North Shore Sanitary District, attorney for Waukegan Township and Lake Zurich village prosecutor.
His Democratic credentials include service as chairman of the Lake County party from 1982 until 1988, and chairman of the Waukegan Democratic Party from 1988 to 1990.
Ukena said his long tenure in the Lake County court system makes him qualified to advance to the bench.
"As a long-time resident of the district, I am looking forward to tackling the unique problems the Lake County judiciary faces," Ukena said. "I feel that my credentials and background make me a perfect fit to bring more balance and understanding to the judiciary."
Subcircuit one includes almost all of Waukegan and Waukegan Township, Beach Park and some of Wadsworth.
Ukena lives in Wadsworth with his wife, Karen, and their two sons.
Help wanted: The Lake County sheriff's office is seeking the public's help in two unsolved murder investigations.
Erica McAdams, an Army soldier who had just returned to the area from military service in Korea, was found shot to death in her burning car Sept. 3, 2006, along St. Mary's Road in Mettawa.
The remains of Chicago resident Iren Bogdan, 23, were found May 5 in a field at Wadsworth Road and Lewis Avenue in Beach Park.
Officials said Bogdan was last seen alive in Chicago almost a year before her body was found.
Anyone with information about either of these cases is encouraged to call (847) 377-4250.
Wysocki named to board: Waukegan attorney Bernard Wysocki has been elected to the board of governors of the Illinois State Bar Association.
The 25-member board directs the operations and activities of the 30,000-member group, which has offices in Chicago and Springfield.
Wysocki, a senior partner in the firm of Wysocki and Smith, is also mayor of the village of Green Oaks and a past president of the Lake County Bar Association.
An ISBA member since 1975, Wysocki has served as an elected member of the group's assembly since 1997 and is a past chairman of its membership and bar activities committee.