Springfield, IL – With less than an hour to review a 764-page proposal radically changing how Illinois will deal with crime and criminals, State Sen. Craig Wilcox cast a ‘no’ vote in opposition to the criminal justice reform measure opposed by every law enforcement group in the state:
“First of all, the measure contains policies that leave neighborhoods and communities more at risk from violent offenders while at the same time defunding police if communities fail to comply with every new and unfunded mandate. Secondly, the way the majority party chose to ram through the proposal with little time for review or debate was an abuse of the legislative process that dragged on throughout all hours of the night. We literally had one hour to review this massive bill. That’s not open, transparent and responsible government. It’s not possible that every member of the Senate was aware of all the details, nor could they fully understand the impact this legislation will have on the safety of the people they represent. For these reasons, I voted no.”
The Senate approved House Bill 3653 by a vote of 32 to 23. The legislation goes to the House for final consideration.
UPDATE: The House subsequently approved the legislation by a vote of 60 to 50. The measure now goes to the Governor for action.
###