March 15, 2016, lost her re-election bid in the Democratic primary. Minors in solitary confinement controversy Another controversial case was a Wicker Park shooting of a homeless man, Sammy Tate, involving two falsely accused black minors. Alvarez approved the keeping of a 15-year-old minor (Deandre Washington) in solitary confinement in Cook County Jail for 4 years pending trial. The trial lasted 45 minutes in 2003 where both defendants were acquitted. Alvarez also refused to resign when asked, yet settled suit against the city in 2012 for malicious prosecution by local Cochran offices for $1 million. Additionally, Alvarez had no response when asked why she kept a minor in solitary for so long. At a 2018 Chicago City Club event, Alvarez's then-press agent still defended the ex-Cook County State's Attorney for not knowing how many minors were kept in solitary confinement during her term in office. Electoral history 2008 Democratic Primary |- | colspan=10 | |- !Candidate !Votes !Percentage |- |Anita Alvarez |244,538 |25.73% |- |Tom Allen |234,976 |24.72% |- |Howard B. Brookins Jr. |172,746 |18.18% |- |Larry Suffredin |210,381 |22.14% |- |Robert J. Milan |55,350 |5.82% |- |Tommy H. Brewer |32,430 |3.41% |- 2008 General Election Anita Alvarez was elected as Cook County State's Attorney in November 2008. Alvarez faced two challengers from both the Republican and Green Party in November 2008's general election. The two challengers were Cook County Commissioner for the 16th district Tony Peraica, and the Green Party's Thomas O'Brien. 2012 General Election Alvarez was reelected to a second term as Cook County State's Attorney in 2012 after defeating Republican challenger Lori Yokoyama. Alvarez won 77% of the vote. 2016 Democratic primary Alvarez ran for reelection in 2016. Her opponents in the Democratic primary included former Cook County assistant state's attorney Kim Foxx and former federal and state prosecutor Donna More. On January 14, the Cook County Democratic Party endorsed Foxx for state's attorney. Alvarez lost the Democratic primary for state's attorney's race to Foxx on March 15, 2016 and called Foxx and conceded at approximately 9:00 p.m. |- | colspan=10 | Results Personal life Alvarez was married to Dr. James Gomez until May 2021. She has four children. Alvarez resides with her family in River Forest, Illinois. References External links Cook County States Attorney website 1960 births Living people American politicians of Mexican descent District attorneys in Illinois County officials in Illinois Illinois Democrats Illinois lawyers