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* As I’ve said time and time again, this has been an historic year in Illinois for criminal justice reform. This is a smallish bill because it merely puts state law in compliance with a US Supreme Court case, but it’s a step…

llinois Gov. Bruce Rauner has signed legislation to end mandatory sentences of life without parole for juveniles. […]

The legislature approved the bill in response to a 2012 U. S. Supreme Court ruling that sentencing people under 18 to mandatory life without parole is unconstitutional.

The law doesn’t prevent minors from being sentenced to life in prison for serious crimes. But it allows judges to take into account certain factors when issuing a sentence. They include the juvenile’s age and maturity, any past abuse and the potential for the minor to be rehabilitated.

* And from the Reader…

(T)he governor’s criminal justice reform commission quietly issued its first report earlier this month. It states that the commission is exploring a number of proposals that would have been unthinkable even a short time ago. Among them: reducing penalties for the possession of less than an ounce of hard drugs, including cocaine and heroin; increasing the number of offenses punishable with probation instead of prison; and offering tax breaks to businesses that employ ex-offenders.

The interim report is here.

posted by Rich Miller
Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:13 am

Comments

Relevant: the Million Dollar Block Project, an effort to map the areas by amount of money spent on corrections. We are spending $550 million a year to jail non-violent drug offenders in the Austin neighborhood alone.

Comment by The Captain Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:25 am
This is a smallish bill that was negotiated for over three years. The real meat and potatoes are in Leader Nekritz’s Excluded Jurisdiction Bill. Really, the bills were products of the same large working group. These 3 bills (I’m including the omnibus crime/ body camera bill as well) are an examples of what open, respectful, bipartisan negotiations look like. The fact that these meetings were not bogged down by the national conversation on police and race is especially noteworthy. Kudos all around.

Comment by Lobo Y Olla Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 9:28 am
SB 1747 is another good bill. It may be a tad complex, but if Governor Rauner is looking for another good bargaining chip then that legislation is certainly an option.

Comment by Team Sleep Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 10:02 am
Good on the GA and the governor. “Mama tried,” but they got it done.

Comment by Wordslinger Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 10:17 am
Good to see he signed something without using it as a bargaining chip for his other priorities.

Comment by Robert the Bruce Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 11:12 am
It took them 3 years to pass a law that accomplishes absolutely nothing. Those are the factors that judges already use to determine juvenile sentences. Another example of the governor and the legislature wasting everyone’s time.

Comment by The402 Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 11:30 am
=== The legislature approved the bill in response to a 2012 U. S. Supreme Court ruling that sentencing people under 18 to mandatory life without parole is unconstitutional.
===

In other words,the GA didn’t do the right thing on their own initiative. It took SCOTUS to force them.

Comment by nona Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 2:24 pm
“SB 1747 is another good bill.”

LOL, good one.

Comment by crazybleedingheart Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 3:32 pm
Kudos to both the Governor and the ILGA on this.

Comment by Formerly Known As... Tuesday, Jul 21, 15 @ 5:17 pm