Providence, R.I.--Providence College graduate Thomas J. Dart '84, the sheriff of Cook County, Ill., was recently named to the 2009 Time 100 list of the world's most influential people. Dart was acknowledged for his efforts to protect renters from eviction when property owners failed to pay their mortgages.

Named in the "Leaders and Revolutionaries" category, Dart and other honorees were recognized at a gala celebration in New York City on May 5. Other notable honorees in the category included U.S. President Barack Obama, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and French President Nicolas Sarkozy.

"Receiving an honor like this really validates a lot of the work we're doing," Dart said. "On a personal level, I get more joy out of my family and friends being excited about it. But when I look at the other people on the list, I realize it is great company to be keeping."

Life dedicated to public service
After graduating from PC with a bachelor's degree in history and earning his juris doctor degree from Loyola University Law School, Dart began his career as an assistant Cook County state's attorney.

He then was elected as a state representative, serving until 2003. While in the Illinois House, Dart was a close ally of President Obama, who was then a little-known state senator.

"I've probably known him for 15 years. We developed a nice friendship and ended up working for each other's campaigns at election time," Dart said. "He's a really neat guy. We haven't spoken in awhile. My schedule is very busy, but I can just imagine how busy he is with all he has on his plate."

After serving as a state representative, Dart was appointed as the chief of staff to the sheriff of Cook County, which includes Chicago. He was elected to his current position in 2006.

As sheriff, Dart leads more than 7,000 employees, which includes 500 sworn police officers and more than 100 civilian personnel, who are responsible for patrolling the 72 square miles where more than 109,000 people reside. He is also in charge of Cook County Jail, the largest, single-site, pre-trial facilities in the country with nearly 10,000 inmates.

Other duties of the department include courtroom services, overseeing a noted gang and vice unit, and carrying out evictions.

The latter duty is what first garnered Dart national attention. In the fall of 2008, Dart announced he would no longer carry out evictions tied to the large number of foreclosures in his jurisdiction.

Public stances make international news
Dart said too many banks were failing to provide basic notification rights to renters living in an apartment building whose owner failed to pay the mortgage.

"I go on a lot of these evictions and I was seeing family after family being put out," he explained, noting that his own wife is pregnant with the couple's fifth child. "I would look at a family and think about the meager things they had being put out on the sidewalk with the certainty that the stuff would be stolen. I saw firsthand that these people did nothing wrong."

Though he has resumed the evictions, he has done so through a new agreement with the court system that calls for proof that tenants have been properly informed and offered information about various social services available to them.

In addition to his eviction stance, Dart has made international news for his lawsuit against craigslist, an on-line classified advertisement Web site. In March, he filed a federal suit against the popular Web site, saying that it should take down a section of its site that he called a "public nuisance" that knowingly facilitates prostitution.

Craigslist has since agreed to change the name of the section and have human monitors manually check each posting before it goes on the Web for public consumption.

PC lessons stayed with him
Throughout his professional career, Dart says he has often harkened back to the lessons a number of PC professors impressed upon him as a student. The most notable theme, he said, is how an individual can have a great impact on society.

"I remember the nature of these classes was more about our responsibility to the greater community," he said. "The people there really confirmed my feelings that doing things for myself was not the route to go.

"What an amazing place. Leaving Providence to come back to Chicago after I graduated was one of the most difficult decisions for me to make. It was such a phenomenal experience."

Editor's note: Dart has written a reflection on his actions as sheriff that will appear in the Spring 2009 issue of Providence College Magazine.

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