By: Ted Dabrowski and John Klingner
Illinois’ new “no-cash bail” provision – the most extreme cash bail abolition in the country – goes into effect September 18, continuing Illinois leaders’ long-running move to decriminalize and decarcerate the criminal justice system.
The SAFE-T Act, originally passed in Feb. 2021, increases public safety risks for Illinoisans – Chicagoans, in particular – by increasing the number of criminal defendants on pretrial release. Chicago is already well on its way to hitting a post-2019 high in major crimes, as we reported recently.
The criminal justice system is also likely to end up less equitable than before, despite “equity” being the core justification for bail reforms. The end of cash bail could mean more minority defendants being detained pretrial and even more minorities ending up as victims.
The implementation of the no-cash-bail system is the culmination of more than two years of legislative and judicial conflicts over the SAFE-T Act. The act made major changes to law enforcement regulations and court procedures, but the elimination of cash bail was its most contentious provision. The law was halted for a time, but the Illinois Supreme Court ultimately upheld the law.
The original 2021 law was even more radical than what’s now going into effect, to the point where it had to be amended three times after its initial passage. Prior to the amendments, it was nearly impossible to detain many potentially dangerous felony defendants. The law was changed only after lawmakers faced intense pressure from 100 of Illinois’ 102 county prosecutors.
But though the law is now much better than its original, it still opens the door to more lawlessness in a state already experiencing a crime crisis – of shoplifting, robberies, mob actions, low arrest rates, unanswered 911 calls – and with no plan to deal with it.
Here’s why the SAFE-T should eventually be unwound:
1. More defendants out before trial means more risk to Illinoisans
Under the previous cash bail system, all felonies were potentially detainable by a judge. That is no longer the case under the SAFE-T Act. Defendants accused of many low level “Class 4” felonies, like criminal damage to property, are simply non-detainable now.
More defendants out before trial will, necessarily, increase the risk to ordinary Illinoisans. It’s simple: more defendants on the street equals more potential for crime.
Proponents of the SAFE-T Act will argue they’re simply trying to keep “nonviolent” offenders out of jail before trial, but as the City Journal’s Rafael Mangual argues, “Nonviolent Crime” Is a Myth. “[There’s an] important reality that progressives working to ease up on supposedly nonviolent crimes don’t seem to appreciate: even ‘minor’ offenses like retail theft, open-air drug use, and smoking on subway platforms are frequently backed by a threat of violence.”
In other words, “what progressives seem not to understand is that “minor offenses” are often manifestations of the broadly antisocial dispositions of individuals who likely have a much greater propensity for violence than the law-abiding.”
CWB Chicago has compiled a long list of cases where felony defendants awaiting trial committed additional crimes. In 2022 alone, there were 82 victims of murder and attempted murder by defendants already awaiting trial for a felony in Chicago.
There’s far more evidence than that. The ongoing impact of Cook County’s 2017 bail “reforms” (which resulted in no or low cash bail in the county) offers a glimpse of what the rest of Illinois may face under no-cash bail: a growing number of pretrial defendants out on bond who end up charged with new crimes. As we wrote last year:
Quarterly reports from [Cook County Chief Judge Tim] Evans’ office show that by halfway through 2020 nearly 9,500 defendants released before trial had been charged with new offenses. By mid-2022 that number had grown to 15,086. That was 18 percent of defendants set loose before trial.
Of those 15,000-plus alleged crimes by pretrial defendants freed from late 2017 through mid-2022, 2,841 were classified as violent offenses, or “person offenses” such as battery, assault, or child neglect. Another 1,594 crimes were weapons offenses.
2. Judges have less discretion
The press is saying judges under the safety act will have more discretion than before. That’s not true. Illinois judges now have less discretion. Here’s why.
Before the end of cash bail, Illinois had a three-pronged pre-trial hearing system where a judge could (1) detain a defendant due to a “threat to the community,” (2) release the defendant on his own recognizance, or (3) a middle ground option requiring a defendant to post cash bail.
The middle ground is key. It let a judge release a defendant prior to trial while imposing a financial incentive to ensure good behavior – whether it was the defendant paying or somebody else posting bail. Without cash bail and the control it grants, judges no longer have such middle ground.
But that’s precisely where the new law leaves judges today: just two options: (1) detain or (2) release. Discretion is gone.
3. The loss of bail is a threat to “equity”
The loss of discretion may actually do more harm to “equity” in criminal justice. With cash-bail gone, judges could:
(1) Decide to err on the side of caution and detain “on-the-fence” risky defendants – locking up those who otherwise could have been out on cash bail. That means more minority defendants locked up instead of out on cash bail.
(2) Release potentially violent defendants who, without cash bail, have no financial incentive to behave. And that increases the risk to the general public.
And by general public, we mean minorities. They are the overwhelming victims of crime. Over 95 percent of homicides in Chicago are inflicted on minorities: 80 percent black and 15 percent Hispanic victims.
For overall violent crimes, black and Hispanic minorities are the victims 80 percent of the time.
The SAFE-T is anything but safe
Chicago has led the nation in homicides for 11 years running. We’ve recently reported that 60 percent of urgent 911 calls in 2022 had no police to respond. Arrest rates for major crimes have fallen to a pathetic 5 percent.
And yet, there’s no plan to address the crisis. Instead, Gov. J.B. Pritzker, Chicago Mayor Johnson, Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Fox and Cook County Chief Judge Tim Evans have all decided to pursue decriminalization and decarceration. The SAFE-T Act is a key part of that agenda.
Read more from Wirepoints:
- 225,000 priority 911 calls in Chicago go unanswered so far in 2023
- Chicago criminals have green light to rob, loot, burgle as odds of punishment collapse to near zero.
- More cops on Chicago’s streets won’t help until criminals are prosecuted and sentenced
- Changes to Illinois’ SAFE-T Act a vindication for opponents of the law, but the Act remains dangerous to Illinoisans
What’s the endgame here? Will these new laws and policies cause people to behave differently in the long run? Will there be an increase in the number of productive members of society, all living together peacefully? This social experiment that is based on the premise that all people are equal and inherently good, and if provided equal opportunity will work together in the interest of the common good is the answer? Welcome to fantasy land.
I look at the bright side of this. The situation is exactly what the liberals wanted and voted for. When the aftermath reaches the northern areas the look on those liberal white housewives having to face crime will be priceless and more importantly they will be getting what they asked for. Good for them and have plenty of popcorn so as to sit back and watch the show of a lifetime.
I am not sure why you were downvoted when you should have 100 up votes. This is what voters want and this is the will of the people of Chicago. Elections have consequences and while it may be catastrophic for Chicago why do we complain when we have one party rule in the state since before I was born? I feel no sympathy for people who voted for this. These are of course a failure at so many levels, BUT this bed is made and everyone will need to sleep in it. Chicago is an absolute joke. So pathetic.
More copy paste.
Do you have a statement to make or anything informative to offer? Please advise as all of us want to see this sharp mind at work once your finished with your low IQ comment. I am ready to be enlightened.
Thanks to the Democrat cash bail law, you can assault 4 cops and they can’t keep you in jail
https://cwbchicago.com/2023/09/woman-accused-of-pepper-spraying-4-chicago-cops-is-first-to-be-sent-home-under-states-cashless-bail-system.html
More excessive stupidity and this has to one of the stupidest laws that give more rights to criminals than their victims. What a way to destroy the city and the state!!!!! Radicals are so obsessed with tearing down everything they forget that we all have to live like this. Inside Cook County it’s just going to get worse. The damage these incompetent people have done is going to hard to come back from. I still love the 2nd amendment and I would be defending myself at all times for those that have to stay. Wish you could leave but hey… Read more »
One of the unspoken reasons for cash bail is to have money. If you have money there’s less of a reason for you to commit an economic crime and more for you to lose with having to pay a fine. In short the system encouraged responsibility.
Illinois residents are gonna learn this lesson the hard way!
I also feel criminals paying their debt to society is a ruse. Their sentences should involve restitution to their victims — not some courthouse. Then crime truly wouldn’t pay.
What a great idea for Illinois’ Democrat run soon to be chocolate city.
More dangerous than not arresting them in the first place??
Criminals do not even bother to run any longer, the cops do not show up to 911 calls most of the time. They are starting to get fat and gain weight. They will soon sue the Chitty for health issues.
The SAFE-T Act’s sponsors all said that IL’s systemically racist criminal justice system incarcerates too many minorities, specifically African-Americans. They honestly believe that ‘Tough On Crime’ is a dog whistle for arresting and jailing minorities. So the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus, along with a majority of Democrats, passed this law to greatly reduce the number of incarcerated minorities. They believe that incarcerating fewer criminals with black and brown skin color is so important of a goal, that all tradeoffs, no matter how costly, are worth the price. You may not agree with this. You may think a criminal should be… Read more »
Well stated thank you !
Will our governor do this? Will Chicago’s mayor even consider this? Maybe it’s all talk from Gov. Newsom but will JB shadow him or do his own thing?
https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/ll-walk-straight-jail-cells-153000421.html
Newsom’s both smart and slick. He’s one of the most astute politicians in America today. He knows smash and grabs are wildly unpopular among normal citizens and no amount of ‘social justice reform’ nonsense will convince the normie otherwise. JB on the other hand is too stupid and arrogant to ever admit the obvious.
Illinois is officially the “wild, wild west.”
Illinois government won’t be happy until the common folk go broke paying lawyer fees. Government will be happy because lawyers will have more money to fund the Democrat party. There’ll be more concealed carry. It’s legally official now, the government WON’T protect you so you must protect yourself. And government is welcoming the armed and dangerous Chinese. We are paying for those arms and they’re laughing at our stupidity. God help the children.
Marxist Democrats Pritzker and Johnson won’t be happy till every hard working citizen taxpayer is a victim of crime.
Legally the police have not been under any legal obligation to protect you unless you are in their custody. It would behoove the average citizen to learn how to protect themselves as the government seems more concerned with protecting criminals, rather than victims.
Several years ago, I occasionally read WP but never commented. Back then, the WP authors seemed to be of the opinion that the people of Chicago (and Illinois) deserved better and its worthy of saving because some residents were not in a position to relocate. Like I said, that was several years ago. How many people that were truly trapped five years ago are still trapped today? How many had the opportunity to get out, yet didn’t? During that time, elderly parents requiring assistance passed away. Children graduated. The economy did not collapse. Unless you were in prison, it’s reasonable… Read more »
Look at what’s happened in the past 5 years. Can you imagine what another 5 years will do to the city/state?
The thumbs down are likely from those that refuse to look in the mirror. They do nothing but complain, only wanting to play victim.
You’re completely accurate. They don’t like being told that they own their situation. In their mind it’s everyone else’s fault.
That’s rich coming from a teacher- the group that does nothing but blame voters, parents, society for the complete failure of the schools, while holding their hands out for more money. Turn your mirror on yourselves.
More lazy assumptions on your part. Who says I’m a teacher? Thanks for displaying your next level ignorance. Voters decide on school board members. School boards run the schools and hire principals and other leaders. Those leaders hire teachers and evaluate them for performance. Those hired teach students based on curriculum set by the district Parents send their kids to these schools. They are responsible for feeding them, clothing them, and ensuring they arrive ready to learn. Students are responsible for learning the material. So in this system it all starts with the voters. The school system decides the curriculum… Read more »
And to me the funniest thing is they, the Illinois citizens, vote for the current situation
Why are you guys here? We’ve got wimps, jerks, a dash of sadism, a gluttonous pensioner and a persistent defeatist in a race to see who can post the most foolish comments! Even funnier, lots are admittedly from out of state and most likely lacking a legitimate political interest. I’m well educated in the social sciences and have yet to discover a logical explanation or characterization for their behavior. Relentlessly posting in an out of state forum encouraging citizens to abandon political tactics and leave their state is about the most unproductive thing I can think of! Out of state… Read more »
There is nothing to address David. People have different thoughts and ideas than you. Although I am quite shocked that WP doesn’t take you up on your offer to write an article with all of your education in the social sciences.
Just keep pretending that the Illinois voters don’t approve of this while they vote for the same people every election. I know I know, if we just only posted your comments then Illinois would be saved. lol
David, I think your time would be better spent writing up your article, posting it on Substack or wherever and letting us look at posting it, rather than spending your time telling people here how wrong they are.
I’ll take your advice too, I spend way too much time here posting my mostly incoherent ramblings!
Dave, the moniker “Dave, hardly” would more aptly describe your views.
Ha ! You’re proving David’s point.
“This sort of behavior only makes sense if you’re trying to destroy opposition political organizations from within” Over at Instapundit, there are several well-known trolls who turn up on certain threads and relentlessly pummel them with negative comments and extremely insulting memes about Trump and MAGA supporters. Recently, a regular commenter there claimed to have found evidence that at least one of these trolls was being paid by Democratic Party organizations to harass conservative blogs. Now, I am not privy to the alleged evidence involved, but apparently there are people who get paid or somehow incentivized to do this sort… Read more »
There’s anecdotal evidence and empirical evidence. The empirical evidence is ultimately based on very advanced probability and statistics math. There’s really not much more I can share if Wirepoints isn’t interested in cooperating. Trust your intuition and do your own research! I plan on finishing a few articles in the near future related to propaganda and other deceptive trends in journalism. I would have finished them months ago, but AI based research has taken over all of my free time. I absolutely have to get these articles out before the Trump trials for obvious reasons. Substantial circulation is important to… Read more »
You got my vote ! Thanks for stating the glaring truth here.
I’m still here because I’m greedy. I make a lot of money and my expenses are low. Saving $10K in taxes won’t offset my salary drop by moving to another state. I will be out of here if I lose my job or decide to retire.
Thanks for stating this as it’s a point I’ve made many times. For many people, Illinois with all of its warts, still provides a better living than the alternative to moving elsewhere. For some people it’s financial while others it may be because of family and friends. Either way, you or others that decide to stay here are making a conscious decision to continue to live and work in Illinois and are definitely not victims.
You are definitely owning your decision annoyed. Keep making that money annoyed. Plenty of time to move later if that’s what you desire.
“you or others that decide to stay here are making a conscious decision to continue to live and work in Illinois and are definitely not victims” True enough. However, that doesn’t mean we voted for, endorse or “own” the policies of the current administration, nor does it mean we have no right to object to or attempt to reverse public policy that we don’t agree with, or that we “deserve everything that’s coming”. I know voting GOP or conservative in IL seems to have all the impact of spitting into a Category 5 hurricane, but rolling over and giving up… Read more »
“However, that doesn’t mean we voted for, endorse or “own” the policies of the current administration, nor does it mean we have no right to object to or attempt to reverse public policy that we don’t agree with, or that we “deserve everything that’s coming”” You have the right to object, complain, advocate for change but at the end of the day you are agreeing to the terms of the majority if you decide to continue to live in Illinois. You are making a decision to stay and try to change the current climate but also to pay taxes for… Read more »