Fact checking the fact checkers
Thursday, Sep 25, 2014 - Posted by Rich Miller
* The AP ran a “Fact Check” of Bruce Rauner’s “early release” TV ad (which you can watch by clicking here). But I’ve got some quibbles with some of the “facts” presented…
RAUNER’S CLAIM: “What happened after Quinn freed them is unthinkable. Sexual assault of a minor, violent domestic abuse and more senseless murders.”
FACTS: The AP found several cases of freed inmates later charged with domestic abuse. At least one is serving a life sentence for a Peoria County murder after early release.
That’s not entirely accurate. Edjuan Payne wasn’t released under the now-infamous 2009 MGT-Push program, he was released in 2010 by the Illinois Prisoner Review Board.
* From a 2010 Peoria Journal Star story…
Payne was found to have consumed alcohol - a parole violation - during a check Jan. 17 [2010] and was taken back to prison, Elman said. Under department guidelines, his violation after early release meant he had to serve the rest of his sentence, which would have kept him behind bars until July 22.
Another state body, however, intervened. The Illinois Prisoner Review Board, which has the authority to alter inmates’ sentences by awarding credit for good time and conduct hearings on alleged parole violations, allowed Payne’s early release once again.
The board granted parole to Payne on March 29. On Friday, 47 days later, he made his first court appearance in Peoria County on a second round of murder allegations.
* And, yes, Payne’s parole agent did recommend that he only serve two months for the violation, but he actually served longer than that 2-month recommendation before the Prisoner Review Board set him free, as the AP itself reported at the time…
But records reviewed by The Associated Press show Corrections recommended Payne serve only two months for his parole infractions.
Payne was locked up longer than that before the PRB set him free.
Corrections spokeswoman Sharyn Elman said Monday that Payne’s parole agent suggested the two-month term and it was not an official agency recommendation, although it was signed by her supervisor.
* And in either case, the Department of Corrections’ MGT-Push program was halted in December of 2009 by Gov. Quinn, months before Payne’s release, as the AP reports today…
QUINN RESPONSE: In a fundraising email to supporters, Quinn campaign manager Lou Bertuca responded that “Gov. Quinn didn’t authorize a single early release. In fact, the very day he found out about the program, he shut it down.”
FACTS: It’s true that Quinn suspended early release within hours of the AP’s report, and permanently terminated it at the end of that month. But two days after the article, Quinn said he had known about the program and claimed it had been well-publicized, but wouldn’t say why he was halting it. The next day, he said then-Corrections Director Michael Randle had not followed specific instructions to bar violent offenders from early release.
When he formally ended the good-time program Dec. 30, 2009, Quinn said he hadn’t known about the program until reading the AP account.
Yes, Quinn said he knew about the program, but he insisted that the program he’d authorized was only for non-violent offenders. Director Randle, Quinn said, had disobeyed his orders and was eventually forced out. And he hadn’t known about the program until reading the AP account actually translates into Quinn’s claim that he didn’t know about violent offenders being released, not about the program itself. A bit of twisting there.
- William j Kelly - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 10:49 am:
Personal plea to Rauner, stop hidding your profits in shady offshore bank accounts and pay your fair share. That would be a good start for you to show your commitment to Illinois.
- Anonymous - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 10:56 am:
William Kelly if you worked once in awhile you also could have a off shore account!!!!
As for the article the commercial is misleading but Quinn also a little misleading in his responce .
- Adam Smith - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 11:03 am:
Fair is fair.
If Quinn and his allies can scream that Rauner is responsible for everything that ever happened at every company GTCR had a stake in, then Quinn has to wear the jacket for every screw up and failure of every state agency under his direct control.
Rich, you’ve spent a great deal of time holding Rauner’s feet to the fire over GTCR’s holdings and what level of involvement Rauner had in day-to-day decisions, which is appropriate. Do the same with Quinn consistently. Tragic failures at DCFS, cronyism at NRI, patronage at IDOT, bone-headed moves at DOC…All of those programs lead directly back to Quinn who is the CEO of the state. Quinn is not an investor, a board member, a business associate. He is the boss, all day, every day.
- William j Kelly - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 11:08 am:
Anonymous, at least you are marginally smarter ( with your anonymity ) than the poor souls who have publicly supported Rauner however ultimately still as foolish. As for my career I typically don’t take any advice from people who don’t even have the courage to use their own names, thanks anyway.
- Former IDOC - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 11:12 am:
From someone who was there (me):
A list of criteria-meeting inmates was generated. Quinn’s office informed Randle that the number of potential early releasees on that list was too low and ordered him to find a way to grow the number.
Criteria was then changed, the list grew longer, ineligible inmates were released, and when it blew up in his face, Quinn threw Randle under the bus.
Quinn then subsequently blamed an “antiquated” offender tracking system for the blunder, and for the past several years IDOC has spent a fortune working with Microsoft to develop a better system. This has taken several years, multiple “go live” date announcements that continually get pushed back indefinitely, and countless taxpayer dollars - all in an effort to cover up incompetence and deception.
- A guy... - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 11:22 am:
I have no reason to doubt Former IDOC, but even if someone does; Does it not seem that a lot of Department Heads and Directors seem to “disobey” this particular Governor.
- MrJM - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 11:23 am:
“Rich, you’ve spent a great deal of time holding Rauner’s feet to the fire over GTCR’s holdings and what level of involvement Rauner had in day-to-day decisions, which is appropriate. Do the same with Quinn consistently.”
Either 1) you visit Capitol Fax frequently and already know that more than any other journalist, Rich has frequently and thoroughly covered the controversies at DCFS, NRI, IDOT and DOC; or 2) you don’t visit Capitol Fax nearly enough to presume to tell the proprietor how to do his job.
I’m mildly curious which it is.
– MrJM
- Anon - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 11:37 am:
It seems to me that each party is eager to hold the other party’s candidate fully responsible for what happened on his watch. When it comes to their own party’s candidate, however, not so much.
If either gets a pass, then so should the other. I know it’s a lot to expect shortly before an election, but how about a single standard of responsiblity, instead of the familiar partisan double standard?
- Rich Miller - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 11:48 am:
===If either gets a pass, then so should the other.===
Nobody is getting a pass here. I’m very familiar with this MGT-Push story because I covered it so much four years ago. There were some blatant distortions of facts then and now. The standard is factual content. If it’s not factual, and I understand that it’s not factual (because I quickly admit to fallibility) then it’s challenged here. If it is factual, or at the least I understand it to be factual, then that’s pointed out as well.
So, bite me.
- Mason born - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 11:52 am:
Anon.
Completely agree! However asking these two groups to agree water is wet is a bigger ask then for pink unicorns.
- Former IDOC II - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 12:29 pm:
I was there as well and the original FORMER IDOC is 100 percent correct. Randle, Benos, Molina were the “fall guys (one gal).”…Quinn’s people pushed for more more more releases. Not one ounce of that program went forward without Quinn’s approval.
- Amalia - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 12:31 pm:
weren’t there three guys forced out? I though there was another guy fired and that Benos left on her own.
- Anon - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 1:05 pm:
My comment from 11:37 was in response to Adam Smith complaining about Quinn purportedly getting a pass. It was not intended as a criticism of CF.
- Amalia - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 1:21 pm:
Randle, Molina, Charlier, Reinhart were the guys put out.
- Conservative Republican - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 1:24 pm:
==Nobody is getting a pass here. I’m very familiar with this MGT-Push story because I covered it so much four years ago. There were some blatant distortions of facts then and now. The standard is factual content. If it’s not factual, and I understand that it’s not factual (because I quickly admit to fallibility) then it’s challenged here. If it is factual, or at the least I understand it to be factual, then that’s pointed out as well.==
I don’t dispute your statement at all. Your coverage, on this and almost everything else, is pretty balanced.
However, I find the comments by Former IDOC and Former IDOC II to be very intriguing. Did Quinn fabricate his cover story, and did he throw Randle under the bus? Do these comments merit being featured in the main story as Updates (with cautionary comment, of course)?
- Precinct Captain - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 2:07 pm:
All these former IDOC people have words, words, and more words. What don’t they have? Memos, documents, anything that isn’t hearsay.
- Amalia - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 2:44 pm:
when this issue blew up big time there were lots of people on the board in defense of certain individuals, some posting by name. did they find out since then they were wrong? or have they moved on?
- Anyone Remember - Thursday, Sep 25, 14 @ 4:03 pm:
With AP and “fact checking” I’m reminded that 3 times since I’ve started voting AP has published a story saying the =pilot= who dropped the Bomb on Hiroshima was Enola Gay. Sorta says it all.