SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) - The Illinois News Broadcasters Association has named Illinois Supreme Court Chief Justice Thomas Kilbride as the recipient of its 2012 “Illinoisan of the Year” award.

The association and the Supreme Court made the announcement Friday. Kilbride will receive the honor at the association’s convention this weekend in St. Louis. Kilbride is being honored for initiating a pilot program to allow cameras in Illinois courts and increasing access to courts for citizens.

Kilbride says the pilot project is working well and with the cooperation of news media is “expanding across the state.”

INBA immediate past president Jim Gee says Kilbride was the unanimous choice for “his overall support of openness in government.”
Previous recipients include former Illinois Governors Jim Edgar and James Thompson and former U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald.

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