Jameika Williams Mangum, an Assistant State’s Attorney in McHenry County, will represent the 22nd Judicial Circuit in the Illinois State Bar Association Assembly beginning in June 2010. Mangum studied Communication at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles. Upon graduation, Mangum went on to obtain a Juris Doctorate Degree from Whittier Law School.

In the weeks leading up to the filing deadline (February 16, 2010), Mangum scrambled around the Woodstock Square obtaining signatures from local ISBA members. “It was a bit challenging because the majority of my day is spent inside of a courtroom, and I did not want to approach attorneys in a courtroom with my petition. Can you imagine the conversation, ‘I think your client needs jail time, but can you please sign my petition for Assembly,’” says Mangum. “I was literally running down Main Street near the square seeking out ISBA members,” says Mangum. She obtained a little more than the required 10 signatures for her petition. There were no additional filings for the 22nd Judicial Circuit.

Mangum is excited about serving on the ISBA Assembly. “I’m looking forward to my first meeting in June, and meeting more Assembly members,” says Mangum. Mangum joined the ISBA in 2007, and enjoys being an active member. “I have met so many great people in the ISBA, and I consider some of them to be my lifelong mentors,” says Mangum.

Mangum is the first in her family to attend college and law school. In fifth grade, Mangum explained in a journal how she would go on to become a lawyer someday. “I’m not sure if my teacher believed me, but I have always been determined to achieve my goals. The only lawyers that I had ever seen were on television. I admired Clair Huxtable (“The Cosby Show”) and her ability to be a successful attorney, while balancing work and family obligations,” says Mangum.

Mangum is a former Law Clerk for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. Prior to joining the McHenry County State’s Attorney’s Office, Mangum worked as an Assistant District Attorney for the State of New Mexico. Mangum was appointed to the Standing Committee on Racial and Ethnic Minorities and the Law and the Criminal Justice Section Council by President John O’Brien. ■