Boone County Clerk and Recorder Pleads Guilty to Theft - Statement from State's Attorney Office

On September 2, 2025, Boone County Clerk and Recorder Julie Bliss pleaded guilty to one count of Theft of Government Property and two counts of Official Misconduct. She was sentenced to four years of probation and 180 days in the Boone County Jail. The plea and sentence were negotiated by the Public Integrity Unit of the Illinois Attorney General's office. The Boone County State's Attorney's Office recused itself at the beginning of the case, and had no influence over the sentence imposed on Ms. Bliss.

In 2015, a Boone County Circuit Clerk's employee received five years in prison for the theft of approximately $24,000.00 from the County. Unlike Ms. Bliss, who is an elected official, that employee was merely an hourly employee of the County. The sentence in the 2015 case is consistent with the Boone County State's Attorney's commitment to holding those charged with violating the public's trust to the highest ethical standards.

Ms. Bliss was indicted by a grand jury in the summer of 2023 on multiple felony counts related to her employment with the County. These counts related to using a county credit card for personal purchases at Walmart, Farm and Fleet, and Amazon; using county funds to pay a personal debt; and theft of cash.

Bliss has been on paid administrative leave for the past two years, as the State of Illinois has no mechanism to remove an elected official from office pre-conviction. A similar instance occurred in 2022 in Winnebago County where the elected coroner there remained in office for two years after he was charged with multiple counts involving theft of governmental funds. After the case in 2022, Boone County State's Attorney Tricia Smith joined with other local elected officials to propose legislation providing a mechanism to remove elected officials who have been charged with crimes relating to their office. That bill died in committee in the legislature. Until the Illinois legislature adopts such a bill, the taxpayers of Illinois will continue to be forced to pay the salaries of elected officials who refuse to leave office upon being charged with these crimes.

Our office would like to thank the staff of the Boone County Clerk and Recorder's Office, who not only were instrumental in bringing the theft to the attention of law enforcement, but also worked tirelessly to maintain a high level of service to the community the past two years while shorthanded. While there are important lessons to be learned from this incident, our office looks forward to moving ahead in a positive manner and continuing to represent the people of Boone County with integrity and honor.