South Cook News

Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed policies that ended Illinois Judge’s ability to set cash bails before a defendant’s first court appearance, a victory for criminal reform and grabbed Republican attention.

“You cannot place a band-aid on a serious issue,” David Sheppard, a GOP candidate, said.

McNamara Phelan McSteen, LLC: Attorney at Law, noted when a person is arrested and charged with a crime, a judge decides on how much bail that person will pay. If they can’t afford bail, they are forced to sit in jail until the end of the trial.

It added the American Bar Association reported approximately a million people sit in jail because they couldn’t pay their bail.

Supporters of the Safety, Accountability, Fairness and Equity-Today (SAFE-T) Act, including the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus, point to the legislation as a step toward making the justice system more equitable for minorities. Republicans have called the SAFE-T Act a “de facto defund the police bill" because of its additional regulations on police officers. The SAFE-T will eliminate cash bail in Illinois, effective Jan. 1, 2023, which critics claim will lead to more criminals out on the streets.

ACLU reported studies showed people are more likely to take plea deals and plea guilty to crimes they didn’t commit because they couldn’t afford bail.

Multiple state's attorneys expressed concern over the legislation at a media briefing in April, according to the Center Square. One of the biggest concerns for many is the elimination of cash bail.

One state’s attorney said, “With this new law, our hands will be tied. What sane citizen in this state of Illinois would want the state’s attorney’s hands tied, the police hands tied, and give all the perks going to violent offenders? That’s what this law does.”

NPR reported Illinois is the first state to end cash bails.

Pritzker recently defended the elimination of cash bail, according to The Center Square.

“We do not want someone in jail because they were arrested for a low-level crime like shoplifting to be sitting in jail for months or maybe even years,” Pritzker said. “At the same time, someone who is a wealthy drug dealer, perhaps accused of murder and arrested, can show up with a suitcase full of money and get out of jail.”