A Kankakee County, Ill., judge has ruled that portions of the Illinois SAFE-T Act are unconstitutional, including bail reform and pre-trial release provisions. The SAFE-T Act was scheduled to go into effect on Jan. 1.
Circuit Judge Thomas Cunnington held that the SAFE-T Act violated the Separation of Powers Clause, the Victim Rights Act, and unconstitutionally amended Article I, Section 9 of the state’s constitution, which codified cash bail in the state.
The suit was brought by dozens of local prosecutors and county sheriffs across the state, and it’s unclear exactly what portions of the act will go into effect and which will be paused. Those counties that didn’t sign on to the lawsuit will have to comply with the new no-bail policies. NBC 5 reports that 64 counties signed on to the suit and will not have to enforce any bail provisions in the Act.
The portion of the law would have allowed judges to decide if a defendant does not pose a public safety risk, they could be released without posting cash bail.
ABC7 Chicago Legal Analyst Gil Soffer explains why Kankakee County Circuit Court Judge Thomas Cunnington believes this portion of the SAFE-T Act is unconstitutional.
“Specifically what this judge is saying is that judges, the judiciary, has the inherent power to make decisions about pre-trial release and bail, and, in this case, the legislature inappropriately took that away from the judiciary, so they found it was a violation of separation of powers,” Soffer said.
Other parts of police accountability and training will still take effect on that date.
Governor J.B. Pritzker issued a weird statement:
Today’s ruling is a setback for the principles we fought to protect through the passage of the SAFE-T Act. The General Assembly and advocates worked to replace an antiquated criminal justice system with a system rooted in equity and fairness. We cannot and should not defend a system that fails to keep people safe by allowing those who are a threat to their community the ability to simply buy their way out of jail. I thank the Attorney General for his work on this case and look forward to the Illinois Supreme Court taking up the appeal as soon as possible.
So instead of allowing criminals to “buy their way out of jail,” we’re going to save them some money and just let them go for free? Sheesh.
Judge Thomas W. Cunnington held the SAFE-T Act unconstitutional on the basis that it violates the separation of powers clause, the Victim Rights Act and unconstitutionally amends Article 1, Section 9 of the Illinois Constitution because the voters were denied their right to vote on such amendments.
In his ruling, Cunnington found that “had the legislature wanted to change the provisions in the Constitution regarding eliminating monetary bail … they should have submitted the question on the ballot to the electorate at a general election” and said the legislature’s action in violation of the separation of powers “stripped away” the court’s ability to ensure the safety of the victim and victim’s family.
The attorney general’s office said the state would appeal the ruling.
Join the conversation as a VIP Member