2024 Election Questionnaire: Riley Oncken, DeKalb County State’s Attorney

Full Name:

Riley Oncken

What office are you seeking?

DeKalb County State’s Attorney

What is your political party?

Republican

What is your current age?

45

Occupation and Employer:

Attorney - The Law Office of Riley N. Oncken, P.C.

What offices, if any, have you previously held?

DeKalb County Board Member - District 3 - 2008-2012, 2013-2015

City:

Sycamore

Campaign Website:

www.rileyoncken.com

Education:

Western Illinois University (2001) - Double Majored in Law Enforcement and Justice Administration and Political Science

Northern Illinois University College of Law (2004) - Juris Doctor

Community Involvement:

Sycamore Education Foundation Board: 2020 - Present

Sycamore Police Pension Board: 2023 – Present

Sycamore Pumpkin Festival Board: 2023 – Present

Goodfellows of DeKalb/Sycamore: 2010 – Present (Treasurer: 2020- Present)

Lawyer in the Lobby Volunteer Attorney: 2023 - Present

Public Interest Law Initiative (PILI) Volunteer Attorney: – 2023 - Present

Spartan Food Pantry NFP: Founding Board Member – 2018 – 2022

DeKalb County CASA Volunteer Attorney: 2005 – 2018

DeKalb County Convention and Visitors Bureau Board: 2010 – 2012

Sycamore Rotary Club: 2009 – Present (Club President: 2014 – 2015)

Wally Thurow Tribute Committee: 2012 – 2014

Christ Community Church, DeKalb, Illinois: Board of Trustees: 2016 – 2020

Northern Illinois University College of Law Alumni Council: 2009 – 2016

Administer Justice Volunteer Attorney: 2018 – 2019

Marital Status/Immediate Family:

I am married to Heather and we have four daughters.

Why are you running for office?

I want to be your next State’s Attorney so that I can continue to serve my community. I have spent my entire adult life in DeKalb County serving people as a private attorney and through many different community service organizations and boards. This is a new opportunity to serve the entire County. My wife and I have chosen to raise our 4 daughters here and I want to make DeKalb County as safe as possible for our family and yours. I will work with our police departments to make our streets safer. I will work with our school districts to make our schools safer. I am committed to seeking justice for victims and ensuring justice for defendants. When I interview someone for a job, I look for 2 qualities above all: high moral ethics and a strong work ethic. When elected, I will bring those 2 qualities to the office and will lead by example.

Will you honor the results of the November election, including the presidential race?

Yes, assuming that the integrity of the election process is not compromised.

Cashless bail and changes to pretrial release hearings have been in effect under the SAFET Act for about a year now. What is your opinion of the new system? Do you believe it’s helping or hurting? Please be specific.

Although well intentioned, I do not believe that the SAFE-T Act is good for the Illinois judicial system. It adds additional burdens to State’s Attorneys’ Offices throughout the state. The SAFE-T Act requires significantly longer detention hearings and additional paperwork, but the legislature did not provide additional funding to State’s Attorney’s Offices for this to be implemented. It also handcuffs judges from being able to detain people who, in their discretion, deserve to be detained. It allows a “catch and release” system for low-level offenders to commit crimes without consequences. When I grew up, I was taught that my actions had consequences. There are defendants being released who are charged with offenses that have caused significant harm to victims, even though there is significant evidence that they have committed the offense and may harm others while released. I do not feel that allowing people to be released to go home to their families while their alleged victims are dead or seriously injured is fair or just. The Act needs to be significantly improved if we are going to be stuck with it.

What do you believe are the top priorities for the office? Should you be elected, how do you plan to address them?

Gun Violence – There are too many guns in the hands of people who cannot legally possess them. I will work with law enforcement to get more guns off of our streets and keep them out of our schools. I will also work with Assistant State’s Attorneys to make sure these cases are charged appropriately and that appropriate plea offers are being made to resolve these cases. The State’s Attorney’s Office needs to be willing and able to take these cases to trial to send a message that gun crime has no place in DeKalb County. I will work to make sure that the Assistant State’ Attorneys are trained and have the resources necessary to aggressively prosecute these cases. I will also respect law-abiding citizens’ rights to possess rearms to protect themselves and their families.

Crimes Against Children – As the father of four daughters, crimes like child pornography, child sexual abuse, and juvenile abuse/neglect will be top priorities for me when elected. I will coordinate with the police, DCFS, Safe Passage, Family Service Agency, and other community service organizations to ensure that offenders are prosecuted and victims, survivors, and their families get the help and support they need to heal.

Domestic Violence – Domestic violence continues to be an ongoing problem in DeKalb County. Having represented both victims and offenders in domestic violence cases, I have insight and experience which will help me identify the more serious cases which require more resources from the office and those victims which are at higher risk. I will work with the police, court services personnel, and victims to determine the risk posed by the defendant and the steps necessary to protect the victim/survivor and the appropriate sentence for a particular defendant. There is no “one size fits all” in domestic violence situations and I will help to equip the Assistant State’s Attorneys working under me to effectively prosecute their cases. It will be a priority to make sure that we are working with survivors to try to get the best outcome for them and their families.

What experience do you have prosecuting violent crime? Please detail.

I have never worked as a prosecutor, but I have successfully obtained Orders of Protection for victims/survivors which involves taking witness testimony, putting on evidence, and persuading the Judge that the offender committed the offenses necessitating the Order of Protection. I have also handled hundreds of misdemeanor, felony, and juvenile cases throughout my career. Although my opponent may have been a prosecutor more than 25 years ago, I do not believe that gives him an advantage over me 25 years later. My philosophy is to let the Assistant State’s Attorneys who were hired to prosecute crimes do what they were hired to do and I will support, equip, and help train them to do their jobs as well as possible.

Domestic violence is an ongoing concern for many in DeKalb County, and arrest rates for those charged with domestic violence-related crimes are frequent, according to daily arrest logs provided by the DeKalb County Jail. If elected, how do you plan to address the trending rates of domestic violence in the community?

Domestic violence has been an ongoing problem for decades. Thanks to organizations like Safe Passage, survivors are getting the help and support that they need to heal and the community is becoming more aware of the signs of domestic violence and how to deal with it. No one deserves to be abused and love should never hurt. I will work to train my Assistants to identify higher risk defendants and repeat offenders and to ensure that they put more focus on those cases. Having previously represented both victims/survivors and defendants for the past 19 years and having worked with Safe Passage for many years, I will bring a unique perspective to the office.

DeKalb County’s Circuit Court operates a number of treatment courts (for substance use, mental illness, etc.), meant to address recidivism and offer some a chance to have their criminal records adjusted if successful in the programs. How, if elected, would you continue to address recidivism and substance abuse issues that are common in the court system?

I am a strong supporter of treatment courts, including drug/dui court, mental health court, and veterans court. By addressing the underlying reason for their criminal behavior (substance abuse, mental illness, untreated PTSD), we can help defendants become better, healthier human beings and avoid future criminal activity by dealing with the root causes. I will continue to look at other programs in other Counties and States that have evidence-based success and will work to implement other alternative programs.

If elected, how would you ensure those who go through the court system, either victim or defendant, are treated equally regardless of race, gender or socioeconomic status?

From a very young age, I was taught The Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have the do unto you. Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect in the criminal justice system. My Biblical values teach me that we are all children of God, regardless of race, gender, socioeconomic status and other differences and everyone deserves justice.

Do you support Karina’s Bill, which aims to strengthen enforcement of the removal of firearms from those with orders of protection against them? More broadly, are Illinois laws too strict – or not strict enough – when it comes to gun rights and gun control and what changes would you advocate for?

It is a slippery slope when the judicial system allows someone’s firearms to be taken without due process or a finding of guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. Like the SAFE-T Act, Karina’s Bill is well-intentioned, but the unintended consequence is that law-abiding hunters, target shooters, and other sportsmen are having their 2nd Amendment rights violated based upon mere allegations of abuse. While victims/survivors need to feel safe, my experience is that no court order or law will prevent an abuser from doing harm if he or she is truly intent on doing it. I do not believe that taking firearms from everyone subject to an order of protection is necessary to deal with the small minority of cases where firearms are used by abusers against their victims. More broadly, I believe that Illinois Legislature has eroded the 2nd Amendment enough and that existing gun laws need to be better enforced, rather than creating more laws taking away our Constitutional rights.

In your capacity as a private citizen, have you or any business entity in which you have a ownership stake received a federal PPP loan? If so, what was the amount and is it repaid, forgiven or still outstanding?

I do not believe that this question is relevant to who the next DeKalb County State’s Attorney should be. However, I did seek and receive a PPP loan to ensure that I could pay my hard-working staff, keep my office doors open, and continue to serve my clients while Governor Pritzker attempted to shut down our State. I have always paid my bills and have never defaulted on a debt or obligation. Using Government funds appropriately is what a prudent leader does for his office. If elected State’s Attorney, I would seek out whatever additional government funding is available for the office so that it can better serve our community.

Have you ever been convicted of or charged with a crime?

No, other than minor traffic violations years ago.