CHICAGO — Criminal justice reform has been a hot topic across the country in recent months, and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker Tuesday proposed seven guiding principles to reform and modernize the state’s criminal justice system.
“These principles aim to keep all Illinois families safe and build opportunity in all of our communities,” a statement from the Governor’s office read.
“We’re building toward an Illinois that works for everyone – and criminal justice reform is a key element of that holistic approach,” said Pritzker.
“At the state level alone, we spend billions of dollars a year keeping too many people in an overcrowded prison system that has proven itself too expensive, too punitive and wholly ineffective at keeping Illinois families safe.”
The Governor’s office says that the principles focus on a holistic approach that addresses the structural flaws “of a criminal justice system that disproportionately impacts people of color.”
The seven principles proposed for an equitable criminal justice system are the following:
- End the use of the cash bail system and limit pretrial detention to only those who are a threat to public safety. The governor remains committed to ending a system that disproportionately forces low-income families and people of color into a disruptive cycle of unearned detention and instability. The cash bail system would be replaced by a risk assessment to determine the likelihood of a defendant’s appearance at trial and if there is a threat to public safety posed by a defendant’s pre-trial release.
- Modernize sentencing laws on theft and drug offenses and use a public health approach to address mental health and addiction. Illinois will decrease unnecessary admissions into prison, match modernized sentencing standards across the country, and limit criminal justice system involvement for non-violent offenders who need and would benefit from a public health intervention.
- Reduce excessive lengths of stay in prison by providing pathways for people to earn opportunities for rehabilitation. The state will increase access to sentence credit and time-limited supervised release while limiting penalty enhancements and short-term commitments that disproportionately trap low-income families and people of color in generational cycles of incarceration.
- Prioritize rehabilitation and reduce the risk of recidivism by increasing access to housing and healthcare for returning residents. The state is committed to expanding opportunities, supports, and services for people who are exiting the prison system so that they are set up to succeed upon return to their communities, and which will save taxpayers money by reducing the number of people trapped in a cycle of recidivism.
- Increase police accountability and transparency for police officers and police departments. Illinois will set the standard for the nation in professionalizing and setting statewide standards for police officers. We will advocate for licensing of police officers, strengthen the role of the State Police Merit Board, work alongside police departments to ensure compliance and proper use of body-worn cameras, create a state-level avenue to investigate systemic police misconduct, and remove barriers for civilians to report officer misconduct, like the signed affidavit requirement.
- Update and strengthen statewide standards for use of force by police officers. Illinois is committed to modernizing the legal standard for use of force and implementing common sense policies and trainings that are consistent with best practices and will improve police-community relations. This includes requiring police officers to apply first aid after using force, prohibiting no-knock search warrants, requiring the use of de-escalation techniques, and requiring officers to intervene and report when excessive force is used by another officer.
- Improve interactions with police by decriminalizing minor non-violent offenses, improving police response to crowd control, and increasing language and disability access. By decriminalizing minor non-violent offenses, creating policies and trainings for police response to non-violent crimes and protests, and increasing language and disability access for civilians, Illinois will establish a framework to improve community safety and trust.
In partnership with the General Assembly, the Governor’s administration has established policies for discretionary parole for young adults facing long sentences. Illinois has also banned private correctional centers and private immigration detention centers.
Pritzker has pardoned over 11,000 individuals for low-level cannabis offenses, with more expected over the coming months.
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