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Bad law takes a turn for the worse (Updated)

Monday, Jun 10, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

* My weekly syndicated newspaper column…

A state law essentially designed to prevent Republicans from appointing legislative candidates to the ballot after the March primary was ruled unconstitutional by a Sangamon County judge last week, but her ruling only applied to the 14 Republican plaintiffs in the case who are running for the Illinois House and Senate.

The law prohibited local party slating of legislative candidates when no candidate had run in the primary. But, as Circuit Judge Gail Noll noted, the bill was passed and signed into law after the 75-day post-primary candidate slating process had already begun. The timing, Noll declared, imposed a “severe restriction on the right to vote,” based on an earlier Illinois Supreme Court precedent. The General Assembly could have passed a bill to stop the practice in future elections, but not in the middle of the process.

A total of 15 Republicans were slated to the ballot and turned in petitions after Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed the bill into law.

Another GOP candidate, Jay Keeven, filed the day before Pritzker signed the legislation. Keeven was widely seen as the target of the law because he is running against Rep. Katie Stuart, D-Edwardsville. Stuart represents a somewhat swingy district, but she outperformed every statewide Democrat on the ballot in 2022. No statewide Democrat lost the district, but some came close, losing by a fraction of a point (Kwame Raoul and Michael Frerichs). The district is one of the few pickup opportunities the Republicans have this fall.

Another Republican House candidate, Timothy Szymankowski, was not a plaintiff in the lawsuit, so the ruling does not yet apply to him. Szymankowski filed to run against Rep. Natalie Manley, D-Joliet.

The law is blatantly unfair and a prime example of super-majority Democratic Party overreach. But it’s extremely unlikely that any of the plaintiffs have even a tiny shot of winning. Pritzker defeated Darren Bailey in the 14 districts covered by the ruling by an average of 47 percentage points.

Most if not all of these candidates were apparently recruited by the Illinois Policy Institute. And the IPI-affiliated Liberty Justice Center filed the lawsuit.

Let’s go back to Republican House candidate Keeven, who was believed to be the target of the law.

“I got my petition filed before the Senate passed that bill and the governor signed it, so I am on the ballot,” Keeven confidently told the Alton Telegraph last month, not long after Pritzker signed SB 2412 into law.

The House Republicans were also convinced that Keeven’s candidacy would be safe after the law took effect. They had recruited Keeven, a former Edwardsville police chief, to challenge Stuart. He was not part of the Liberty Justice Center’s successful lawsuit, but few thought Keeven would need that protection.

However, Matt Dietrich, a spokesperson for the Illinois State Board of Elections, told me Keeven could very well be tossed off the ballot when the board meets next month.

Since Keeven wasn’t a plaintiff, Dietrich said, “he’s not going to get the protection if this order stands up,” on appeal. “Keeven could still be objected to based on the new law, and our board could say, ‘OK, it’s the law.’”

But Keeven filed the day before the law took effect, I pointed out.

“Doesn’t matter,” Dietrich said.

But Keeven got in before the law took effect, I again said.

“Yeah, but what does the law say?” he asked. “The law says no one is eligible for the 2024 ballot for the General Assembly unless there was a primary candidate from that party.”

Oh.

He’s right: “However, if there was no candidate for the nomination of the party in the primary,” the new law says about the local slating of legislative candidates, “no candidate of that party for that office may be listed on the ballot at the general election.”

So, the law doesn’t necessarily ban local slating. The statute bans listing those slated candidates on the ballot, which is what the State Board of Elections will decide about Keeven next month. And since Keeven wasn’t part of the lawsuit, he’s not protected from a legal challenge at the board.

If the board tosses Keeven next month, he could always resort to the courts. But Noll’s ruling carries no precedent, so a different judge might possibly rule a different way, unless or until an appellate court steps into the broader case.

Welcome to Illinois.

…Adding… Sara Albrecht at the Liberty Justice Center…

We are not affiliated with the Illinois Policy Center in any way. John Tillman was one of our founders but has left the organization in 2020. We have always been a separate 501c3. The extent of our relationship is that I do serve on the IPI board, but I also serve on the board of the Museum of Contemporary Art, Harris Theater and many others and I don’t think those would be considered affiliates of LJC. We litigate cases in 35 states and while we were founded in Illinois, our state of incorporation is Texas as of December 2023.

Regarding Jay Keeven—he was the first person we asked to join our lawsuit challenging the slating law. We felt that because he had filed before the law was signed, it was important to include him to protect his filing. He declined. When we added a group of candidates after we secured the PI, we went back to Mr. Keeven and asked him once again to join the plaintiff class. He again declined. We invited all the slated candidates to join the suit, many had their own attorneys and declined along with Mr. Keeven.

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Selected press releases (Live updates)

Monday, Jun 10, 2024 - Posted by Rich Miller

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Isabel’s afternoon roundup

Friday, Jun 7, 2024 - Posted by Isabel Miller

* Background is here if you need it. Ben Szalinski…

* Tribune…

Marseilles Redmond is pursuing early release in a case that her attorney and domestic violence advocates say is emblematic of a criminal justice system that has historically not taken the complexities of abuse into account when ordering harsh sentences.

Redmond, 44, for years has sought sentencing relief under an Illinois law that allows domestic violence survivors to make a case to a judge for a reduced sentence. But her quest for release from prison was thrown a new obstacle by the Illinois Supreme Court in November when it ruled in another case that the law doesn’t apply to defendants like Redmond who entered a guilty plea instead of having been convicted by a judge or jury.

Now, the door has cracked open again for Redmond. In May, the Illinois legislature amended the law to clarify that domestic violence survivors who pled guilty can seek resentencing. And though the change doesn’t take effect until next year, Cook County prosecutors withdrew their objection to a new sentencing hearing for Redmond.

Alexis Mansfield, a senior adviser with the Women’s Justice Institute who fought for the amendment in the wake of the court decision, said the legislation paves the way for more survivors to seek relief under the law.

* Supreme Court of Illinois…

Justice Lisa Holder White and the Illinois Supreme Court have announced the assignment of Seventh Circuit Judge Raylene DeWitte Grischow to the Fourth District Appellate Court.

“Judge Raylene DeWitte Grischow will make an outstanding addition to the Appellate Court,” Justice Holder White said. “She is an accomplished, hardworking, community-minded person
who maintains the highest ethical standards. I am confident she will thrive at the appellate level.”

Judge Grischow is being assigned to fill the vacancy created by the impending retirement of Justice John W. Turner on July 5, 2024. The assignment of Judge Grischow is effective July 8,
2024, and will continue until further order of the Court. Judge Grischow was appointed to the bench as a Resident Circuit Judge in the Seventh Circuit for Sangamon County in 2019 and elected in 2020. Her assignments include the felony division and complex civil litigation as well as overseeing the Veteran’s Treatment Specialty Court. Prior to joining the bench, she was a partner at Hinshaw & Culbertson LLP, where she worked from 2002 to 2018. She served as one of the business development leaders for the firm’s Government Practice Group and as a Network Coordinator for the firm’s Women Attorneys Network.

…Adding… Press release…

Today, Governor JB Pritzker took the following bill action:

Bill Number: SB3268

Description: Annual Medicaid Omnibus. Contains rate increases for various healthcare services, professions, and facilities.

Action: Signed

Effective: Immediately

Bill Number: HB4582

Description: Bond Authorization Act of 2024. Increases bonding authority for General Obligation Bonds, Build Illinois Bonds and bonds issued by the Illinois Housing Development Authority.

Action: Signed

Effective: July 1, 2024

Bill Number: HB4951

Description: 2024 Revenue Omnibus

Action: Signed

Effective: Immediately, with some provisions taking effect July 1, 2024, January 1, 2025, and July 1, 2025.

*** Statewide ***

* NBC Chicago | Illinois to offer 4 ‘Free Fishing Days,’ where you won’t need a license to fish: According to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Free Fishing Days will happen June 14-17. Any Illinois residents can fish without purchasing a license, salmon stamp or inland trout stamp, according to IDNR officials. Several communities will also host events in celebration of the free fishing days, including Will County’s Hidden Lakes Trout Farm, which will feature three days of giveaways and events, according to officials.

* NBC Chicago | Payments begin for class-action Instagram settlement in Illinois. What to know: Check your bank accounts: Instagram users who were part of a $68 million class-action settlement in Illinois have started receiving their payouts. According to users, many started receiving their settlement checks or automatic payments Friday. Many users reported receiving about $32 for their claims.

* Capitol News Illinois | Time running out to net and protect young plants from cicada-related damage: While Illinois’ dual emergence of periodical cicada broods is harmless to people and animals, young trees may sustain serious damage if not protected by mid-June, experts at The Morton Arboretum said. This is the first co-emergence of these two broods since 1803, researcher Katie Dana from the Illinois Natural History Survey told Capitol News Illinois, making it a truly once-in-a-lifetime event. Although each brood will appear in 2037 and 2041, respectively, the 221-year-long cycle means the next time both broods emerge at the same time will happen in 2245.

* Daily Herald | Is double elimination an answer for IHSA baseball, softball?: Alas, I doubt a double-elimination format will fly in the IHSA. A proposal could be submitted and advanced to a vote by the member schools, but would there be any support. Three full days of games is an awfully long commitment. The four semifinalists would have to arrive to the tournament site on Wednesday. The finalists probably couldn’t leave until Sunday if they played that decisive seventh game.

*** Chicago ***

* Sun-Times | Chicago’s homeless population increased threefold, a city snapshot shows, owing largely to migrants: More than 18,800 Chicagoans experienced homelessness on a single night in January — a threefold increase over last year that was largely driven by 13,900 asylum-seekers who had no permanent place to stay. The estimates released Friday come from the city’s annual snapshot of the number of people experiencing homelessness on a single night. This year’s point-in-time count was conducted on Jan. 25 — shortly after the city saw its peak of the number of migrants it sheltered. During the count, 13,679 asylum-seekers were living in shelters, with 212 unsheltered.

* Sun-Times | PPP fraud was fueled in part by brokers taking kickbacks but escaping punishment, Sun-Times finds: In one case, the Chicago Housing Authority revoked a rent voucher for a woman accused of getting fraudulent loans through the federal Paycheck Protection Program that a broker on Facebook offered to arrange. And six fired Illinois state government workers also said they kicked back parts of their loans. But the people arranging them escaped punishment.

* Sun-Times | Another summer, another debate over teen curfews as downtown residents question their effectiveness: “I think all one has to do is just google ‘How effective are teen curfews?’ and you’ll find almost all the research indicates they are ineffective at controlling crime,” Jim Wales, president of South Loop Neighbors, told the Sun-Times. […] Wales, who also sits on the Grant Park Advisory Board and has a background in law enforcement, said he understands the need to respond to these “horrendous situations.” As a resident, Wales also wants violent crime to be addressed, but cautioned council members against passing laws that “aren’t necessarily effective in dealing with that problem.”

* Crain’s | Chicago has third-most Fortune 500 companies in the U.S.: Chicago is now home to 15 companies ranked on the 2024 Fortune 500 list, the third-most in the U.S. after New York City with 41 companies and Houston with 21. Last year, Chicago only had 13 companies making the esteemed list and didn’t even place among the top three cities — Atlanta came in third. The two new companies on this year’s edition include GE HealthCare and Kellanova. Last year, Battle Creek, Mich.-based Kellogg split into two separate publicly traded companies: WK Kellogg, which is still based in Battle Creek, and Kellanova, which is headquartered in Chicago.

* Tribune | Federal racketeering charges accuse two reputed gang members with slaying of National Guard cadet: Weeks after a high-profile FBI raid on a quiet Lincoln Square street, federal racketeering charges have been unsealed accusing two gang members in the 2021 drive-by slaying of a teenage National Guard member on the Northwest Side. Gary Roberson, who goes by the nickname “Gotti,” and Joseph Matos, whose street name is “Troubles,” were charged in an indictment unsealed Thursday with murder in furtherance of racketeering conspiracy, which could bring the death penalty if convicted, court records show.

* Tribune | Bally’s Chicago rebounds with record revenue in May, as Freedom Center nears demolition to make way for permanent casino: The gaming revenue represented a 13% increase from April, when Bally’s saw its first month-over-month decline since the temporary casino opened at Medinah Temple in September. Bally’s Chicago admissions were up 5% for May to nearly 119,000 visitors, ranking second behind Rivers Casino Des Plaines, which remains the busiest and top revenue-generating casino in the state, according to the monthly data.

* WBEZ | How blues legend Buddy Guy made his indelible mark on Chicago: “Anyone who has never seen Buddy Guy before, this is the time to do it,” said Brother Jacob, aka Jacob Schulz, a Chicago blues singer and blues history aficionado who hosts a show on the Buddy Guy Radio internet station. “He really puts on a masterclass during his performances, and I think they get better and better every year.”

* Block Club | NASCAR Street Race Closures Start Monday. Here’s Where To Avoid: Pre-race closures for July’s NASCAR Street Race start early Monday morning Downtown. Ida B. Wells Drive will close from Michigan Avenue to Columbus Drive for construction of the main viewing areas. The next set of closures is set to take place June 19 along Michigan Avenue. The NASCAR race is July 6-7, though the city will need 19 days in all for setting up and then tearing down the course.

*** Downstate ***

* IPM | New opponent emerges for Nikki Budzinski, with support from Green Party presidential hopeful Jill Stein: A 27-year-old Green Party candidate has entered the race for Congress in Illinois’ 13th District. On Thursday, Chibuihe “Chibu” Asonye stumped with Green Party presidential hopeful Jill Stein in Champaign-Urbana. Asonye is a residence hall director at the University of Illinois and a former Democrat. She says she tells her Democratic family and friends, that the party isn’t serving them.

*** Cook County and Suburbs ***

* Daily Herald | Will County Board OKs landfill consultant contract for ex-state tollway chairman: The hiring of [Robert Schillerstrom] reflects one more partisan divide in county government. Landfill oversight falls under the duties of County Executive Jennifer Bertino-Tarrant, a Democrat. The county board, which is divided evenly between Democrats and Republicans, however, will have a say in the future of the landfill.

* Daily Herald | Wheels, Inc. to lease more than a quarter of Zurich North America headquarters in Schaumburg: When that announcement was made last summer, Jones Lang LaSalle Senior Managing Director Andrea Van Gelder described a trend of companies gravitating to smaller but higher-quality office spaces. Zurich’s building would be the highest-end leasable space available in the region, she said.

* Daily Herald | Habitat for Humanity building a 28-home subdivision in Carpentersville: Village trustees recently signed off on a 28-home subdivision proposed by Fox Valley Habitat for Humanity. It will be off Kings Road near Dundee Crown High School. The subdivision is named Carter Crossing after President Jimmy Carter and his wife Rosalyn, both longtime Habitat supporters. It will be one of the largest Habitat developments in Illinois, said Barbara Beckman, executive director of Fox Valley Habitat for Humanity.

*** National ***

* NYT | Clarence Thomas, in Financial Disclosure, Acknowledges 2019 Trips Paid by Harlan Crow: Other Supreme Court justices chronicled their gifts, travel and money earned from books and teaching. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson reported receiving four concert tickets valued at about $3,700 from Beyoncé and $10,000 of artwork for her chambers from the Alabama artist and musician Lonnie Holley.

* Arkansas Advocate | For some rural communities, a stripped-down hospital is better than none at all: On many days, some small hospitals in rural Mississippi admit just one patient — or none at all. The hospitals are drowning in debt. The small, tight-knit communities they’ve anchored for decades can do little but watch as the hospitals shed services and staff just to stay afloat. The federal government recently offered a lifeline: a new Medicare program designed to save dying rural hospitals that will pay them millions to stop offering inpatient services and instead focus on emergency care.

* NewsGuard | Fake Local News Network Infects 49 States with Fake COVID-19 Death Claims: Metric Media operates a network consisting of locally branded websites across the U.S., with names such as East Arizona News, Nevada Business Daily, and Central Wisconsin News. In fact, those outlets are so-called pink slime sites, which are used by groups on the left and the right to influence voters with one-sided news coverage, undermining the overall trust in news. These secretly partisan sites masquerade as independent local news sites.