The policy on ending cash bail in Illinois continues as the Illinois Supreme Court set the start of the policy for September 18.
In early 2021, the Safety, Accountability, Fairness and Equity Act narrowly passed the Illinois General Assembly today. The move, which delayed the implementation of statewide no-cash bail, changed several aspects of the regulation of police and criminal justice policies. Multiple reforms have been passed since then, including in late 2022 to expand the list of violent crimes that could be held pending trial.
Despite the changes, state attorneys general across Illinois sued to block the law, claiming it violated the Illinois Constitution’s separation of powers and victims’ bill of rights. After hearing the case in March, the Illinois Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld the law as constitutional.
Local courts now have until September 18 to begin the policy of ending cash bail. Many were already working toward January 1 implementation before the law was put on hold pending the outcome of the court’s decision this week.
In a statement, Illinois House Minority Leader Tony McCombie, R-Savanna, said the end of cash bail is not what bail reform is about.
“Anyone who is familiar with the court system knows that this is not about the possibility of an offender being able to post bail, but about a progressive movement to decriminalize crime and promote an environment for repeat offenders,” McCombie said.
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul told Illinois Central Management Services that the “notion that the sky is falling” is “nonsense.”
“Judges retain the ability to make an assessment of whether someone is a public safety risk or a flight risk,” Raoul said.
Governor JB Pritzker called the court’s order a “common sense ruling.” And despite concerns about perceived conflicts of interest over the governor’s $1 million donation to each of the two Supreme Court justices since they ran for the job in 2022, Pritzker praised the jurists.
“I think that each of these lawyers is a person of good reputation. They are bringing all their knowledge and experience to the table to try to make good decisions,” Pritzker said.
Pritzker said Republicans lost on the issue in the 2022 election.
State Rep. Steve McClure, R-Springfield, argued that ending cash bail would be lost if put to voters. McClure denounced the ruling and the judges who did not recuse themselves.
“I’m sorry, but these two judges should not rule on any case involving any important law involving Governor Pritzker. Period,” McClure said.
In a separate lawsuit challenging Pritzker’s gun and magazine ban, Judges Elizabeth Rochford and Mary O’Brien declined to recuse themselves as proposed by lawyers for state Rep. Dan Caulkins, R-Decatur. The court’s decision in this case is still pending.
###
