Overview
- Circuit judges voted 144–109 for Beach with one spoiled ballot, unseating Evans after 24 years in the role.
- The result followed two rounds of secret paper ballots after Judge Nichole Patton withdrew and backed Beach.
- Beach will serve a three-year term starting Dec. 1 and is assembling transition teams to coordinate with the clerk and sheriff.
- The longtime defense attorney and eight-year judge, who served in the Pretrial Division, says he will prioritize better communication, technology upgrades, transparency and staff safety.
- Reform advocates welcomed his record on pretrial fairness, State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke congratulated him and pledged collaboration, and Evans’ next steps were not disclosed.