State’s Attorney Don Knapp is running for judge in the 11th Circuit to fill a vacancy left when Paul G. Lawrence retired. The 11th Circuit is made up of Woodford, Livingston, McLean, Ford and Logan counties.
Knapp defeated Judge Amy McFarland in the Republican Primary on June 28th. No Democrat is running against him in the general election on Nov. 8.
On Aug. 10 the Illinois State Supreme Court filed an order appointing Knapp to fill the remainder of the term left open by Lawrence from Sept. 16 to Dec. 5. So even though Knapp has been appointed his race remains on.
Knapp’s appointment was announced at the McLean County Board meeting on Aug. 11th. He will be resigning as State’s Attorney as of September 16th. Knapp has served in that position four years.
Knapp Versus McFarland in 11th Circuit, McFarland Accused of being a Democrat
After Knapp’s win in the primary, he wrote in a Facebook post, “Tonight was the culmination of the lessons I learned about hard work and good fortune I experienced through having so many people that have cared for me in my life.”
During the primary campaign Knapp stated, “With the implementation of the SAFE-T Act and the General Assembly’s decision to limit a judges discretion concerning detaining defendants, I think it is more important than ever to have judges who appropriately exercise the discretion they have actually retained.”