Kankakee judge's ruling on SAFE-T Act applies to only some Illinois counties
CHICAGO (CBS) – A controversial law set to make several changes to the state's criminal code was partially blocked by a Kankakee County judge Wednesday night.
The SAFE-T Act will only apply to some Illinois counties come Jan. 1, 2023 with the ruling. CBS 2's Sabrina Franza broke down the latest developments.
The statue is long, confusing and controversial. In it, one CBS 2 expert said, crimes fall into two categories: detainable and non-detainable.
With this latest lawsuit ruling, it's also a question of where the arrests happen, because come Jan. 1, some counties will follow the old set of rules and others will follow the SAFE-T Act rules.
Let's start with a crime like a robbery, stolen mail.
Before the SAFE-T Act would go into effect, the process is simple: arrest, charge, see a judge. The judge sets bail, or no bail.
But with the SAFE-T Act provisions, the process changes.
"The state's attorney is the one who has to file a petition before the judge," said former Cook County judge Daiel Locallo. "The judge has no say."
CBS 2's expert said the new law deems some crimes as non-detainable, like stealing packages, or other Class A, B, and C misdemeanors.
The person that gets caught gets a summons to appear before a judge later.
"In Cook (County), if (State's Attorney) Kim Foxx doesn't allow a petition to be filed, the judge is going to have to release him," Locallo said.
If a defendant is to be deemed detainable, they would have to meet a list of standards. Prosecutors have to prove that a defendant poses a risk to the safety of a specific person or persons and/or has a high risk of fleeing before trial.
They have to petition to keep that person in jail, which many say takes the power out of the hands of the presiding judge and the pressure on the victims.
"Forceful felonies is limited to certain offenses, murder, aggravated kidnapping, aggravated arson," Locallo said.
Kankakee County Chief Judge Thomas Cunnington ruled some parts of the SAFE-T Act were unconstitutional. It keeps provisions like requiring all law enforcement to wear body-worn cameras by 2025. But it stops the new bail reform in its tracks, so long as you live in one of the 54 counties mentioned in the lawsuit.
So if that package thief is arrested in Kankakee, they'll follow the old set of rules.
In Cook, Lake, DuPage, and Kane counties, the SAFE-T Act will apply.
Locallo said to expect prosecutors to provide evidence you'd see at a trial, before the actual trial.
"Witnesses have to be interviewed," he said. "Police reports have to be written the day after someone gets arrested. There's a lot of data that hasn't been collected."
All of this could change if that same Kankakee judge issues an injunction before Jan. 1. That would mean the ruling could apply statewide.
The SAFE-T Act would not go into effect in the new year, and would likely go before the Illinois Supreme Court to review.