(WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- A court reporter who has been capturing legal proceedings across the Chicago area for 55 years keeps typing away.
Donna Urlaub has won state and national competitions for her speed and accuracy in stenography -- typing shorthand for up to 280 words per minute.
This week the National Court Reporters Association announced it inducted her into its academy.
As a certified shorthand reporter, the Lombard freelancer has transcribed depositions, expert testimony and trials.
One case was the divorce deposition of Laurie Dann, roughly a year before the Glencoe woman went on a violent spree.
After Dann killed a boy and wounded five other students, Urlaub went back to her paper notes and remembers Dann as a drab woman with chewed fingernails who gave confusing and unemotional answers to questions.
Urlaub says having a person transcribe what’s said instead of a computer means fewer chain-of-custody issues and more attention to crucial details like punctuation, which could dramatically change the meaning of a statement.
She stays sharp by practicing while watching the national news and the many pharmaceutical ads, which include those rapid-fire disclaimers about side effects.
The 74-year-old credits her work with keeping her mentally fit and doesn’t see herself retiring from the Chicago agency she runs with her daughter any time soon.
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