Illinois Constitutional Convention takes a statewide road trip

Law and Public Issues

By Ann M. Lousin

Ann M. Lousin has been a professor at The John Marshall Law School since 1975. Before then, she was a research assistant at the 1969-1970 Illinois constitutional convention and parliamentarian of the Illinois House of Representatives. Her treatise “The Illinois State Constitution: A Reference Guide” was published in December 2009. She can be contacted at 7lousin@jmls.edu.

Posted March 23, 2020 9:00 AM

Shortly after The Sixth Illinois Constitutional Convention opened on December 8, 1969, the issue of holding hearings arose. Representatives of groups and officials were eager to testify, but how could ordinary Illinoisans present their views? On January 7, 1970, Samuel W. Witwer, president of that year’s convention, appointed a committee to study the feasibility of holding open hearings around the state.The chair of the committee was David Stahl, Deputy Mayor of Chicago. Stahl and Witwer told the other delegates that …

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