Proposed Murder Convict Registry Advances

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WBBM/CBS) -- Those convicted of first-degree murder will have to register with a public searchable database if a bill moving through the Illinois General Assembly becomes law.

As WBBM Newsradio 780's Lisa Fielding reports, the database would include names, addresses, places of employment, schools attended and photos for offenders for up to 10 years after their release from prison.

LISTEN: Newsradio 780's Lisa Fielding reports

The bill was first introduced in January by state Rep. Dennis Reboletti (R-Elmhurst.)

It would apply to those who were convicted of first-degree murder in Illinois before June 1998.

The bill was prompted by the release Nov. 16 of Justin Boulay, 33, who had served half of a 24-year sentence for the February 1998 murder of his ex-girlfriend, 18-year-old Andrea Will.

The reason he was released early was a provision in Illinois law before 1998, in which prisoners got one day off their sentence for every day they served in prison, CBS 2 Legal Analyst Irv Miller explained at the time.

Upon his release, Boulay went off to Hawaii to live with his wife, an assistant university professor whom he married behind bars.

Will's mother, Patricia Rosenberg, said last month that the proposed registry law would finally serve justice for her daughter.

The bill passed the state House Tuesday by a vote of 97-1.

In:
• Andrea Will
• Lisa Fielding
• Illinois House of Representatives