Gov. JB Pritzker set off a chain reaction last November when he told reporters he’d be open to changes in the SAFE-T Act, which eliminated cash bail and replaced it with a new pre-trial release/retention system, among other things. Pritzker was asked about the case of a woman, Bethany MaGee, who was horrifically set ablaze […]
crime
Posted inRich Miller
SAFE-T Act under fire again
In the days after the horrific burning of a woman on a Chicago CTA train by a clearly deranged habitual criminal suspect last month, some in the news media immediately focused on their go-to issue: The SAFE-T Act. “Illinois leaders blast SAFE-T Act after repeat offender charged with lighting woman on fire on CTA Blue […]
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Former Muni board member fired from job in Rochester district
A Petersburg man who resigned from a Springfield Municipal Opera board after parents complained he didn’t do enough to shield children in community theater programs from another man’s sexually inappropriate comments was fired from his job April 19 for allegedly making “sexually suggestive” comments to Rochester High School students. Bill Bauser Jr., who had worked […]
Posted inNews
Getting smart on crime
Rep. Michael Zalewski People convicted of low-level crimes in Illinois could soon see less time behind bars, but that doesn’t mean Illinois is going soft on crime. State lawmakers during the spring legislative session approved the creation of a committee to reconsider sentencing guidelines. However, the legislator who pushed the idea says it’s about being […]
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Getting it right
Brian Banks spent five years in prison for a rape that never occurred, but he was freed with help from the California Innocence Project. Banks is shown here carrying petitions calling for the release of another prisoner in California whom some believe to be innocent. PHOTO BY BRIAN VAN DER BRUG/MCT Brian Banks had the […]
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Drug dogs fail the sniff test
Flip a coin and pick a side. Repeat 50 times. Chances are, you’ll guess the coin toss more often than drug-sniffing police dogs in Springfield found contraband during traffic stops in 2012. Traffic stop data reported by the Springfield Police Department shows the police found contraband in 25 percent of searches prompted by a drug […]
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More jail time for gun crime?
Illinois lawmakers are considering an increase in minimum prison time for carrying a weapon under certain circumstances, but opponents say that won’t reduce crime. Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel is pushing the bill, which may be voted on when lawmakers return to Springfield in January. Rep. Mike Zalewski, D-Chicago, sponsors Senate Bill 1342, which would increase […]
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Fewer kids in Illinois prisons
During the late 1980s and 1990s, Illinois’ youth prisons began filling up rapidly. The tough-on-crime approach that began in the 1960s was at the peak of popularity, and state law reflected it in mandatory minimum sentences and other provisions. From 1985 to 2000, the state’s population of incarcerated youth more than doubled, from 1,534 to […]
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Inside the House of the Rainbow
In a humble house by the railroad tracks, a recently released ex-con sits idly on a worn-out couch, smoking a cigarette and ashing in a tuna can. He’s explaining his views on society with an air of irreverence, as one who has seen just about everything. He gives a pseudonym – Tom Bennett – to […]
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Lawmakers vote to reinstate early prisoner release
Illinois prison inmates may soon qualify for early release once more under a bill passed by state lawmakers last week. If approved by Gov. Pat Quinn, the move would address state prison overcrowding that resulted in part from the suspension of early prisoner release more than two years ago. On May 31, the last day […]
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‘We must do better for our young people’
Illinois’ system of warehousing juvenile delinquents doesn’t work, according to a state-appointed reform group calling for sweeping changes in how youth offenders are handled. The Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission, a state advisory group mandated by federal law, revealed Dec. 13 a damning report on the failures of Illinois’ juvenile justice system. More than half of […]
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Sex offender board can’t manage sex offenders
An audit of the Illinois Sex Offender Management Board shows failures in tracking sex offenders, even as the state legislature considers ramping up monitoring requirements. The audit, released May 26 by Illinois Auditor General William Holland, says SOMB failed to develop a system for monitoring sex offenders seven years after those requirements took effect. Created […]
