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* Press release…
In response to Tuesday’s vote in the Illinois Senate to reject Jeff Mears’ appointment to the Prisoner Review Board, Illinois Prison Project Executive Director Jennifer Soble released the following statement:
“With Tuesday’s vote, some lawmakers made clear their intention to eviscerate the Illinois Prisoner Review Board. It’s the latest in a constant drumbeat of vitriol and hyperbole meant merely to incite fear and scrounge up election-year favor. Human lives are not political bargaining chips.
“An unencumbered Prisoner Review Board is vital to a functioning legal system. Among its many duties, the PRB processes and makes recommendations on requests for clemency — a mechanism enshrined in the Illinois Constitution and intended by our state’s framers as an important check on the legal system. It’s meant to bring justice to people sentenced to unjustly long prison terms, and to recognize growth and transformation in a system that does neither. It works in concert with the legal system, not in opposition to it.
“Before lawmakers began dismantling it, the PRB was the most diverse in Illinois’ history. For the first time, it truly reflects the lived experiences of people across our state and was composed of people with varied and important experience from all aspects of the criminal legal system. The recent attacks on the PRB not only leaves it too small to carry out some of its most crucial functions, but is also an attack on diversity and equality in government.
“I urge lawmakers to fully empower the PRB to carry out its duties as generations of lawmakers intended, not to cripple it for political gain.”
* Press release…
Today, the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois responded the recent debate and inaction in the Illinois Senate regarding the confirmation of members to the Illinois Prison Review Board. The following can be attributed to Ben Ruddell, Criminal Justice Policy Director for the ACLU of Illinois:
The Prison Review Board (PRB) plays a critical role in our state’s criminal legal system and in the lives of thousands of Illinoisans each year. It offers individuals who have already served significant time in prison a meaningful opportunity for consideration of release and a chance to make a positive contribution to their families and communities upon release. That system should not grind to a halt because of a recitation of offenses of those who stood before the PRB versus the life changes and proof of rehabilitation that led to grants of clemency (and parole). Illinois should not permit Willie Horton era fear mongering to be advanced over the need for justice and compassion in our system. Illinois must take the action needed to prevent the suspension of the meaningful work that the PRB does to foster justice and equity in case outcomes and right size our state’s prison population. Doing harm to individuals across Illinois in a vain attempt to look tough on crime has failed for years. It must end.
We encourage the Senate to vote – up or down – on the members of the PRB by assessing the qualities and traits that each candidate brings to the work – not on mischaracterizations of their voting records. We need a functioning PRB.
* The governor was asked about the PRB issue yesterday and he mostly blamed the Republicans, who hold a mere 18 seats in a 59-seat chamber…
I think what the Republicans are trying to do now is to essentially break down a function, an important function of government. They want to do away with it, just like during the Rauner years. So much was done to break down the functions of government, agencies of government. This is not right. And as you may know, if we don’t appoint enough members to the PRB, if they’re not approved, the PRB will not be able to have a quorum. And that quorum wouldn’t therefore be able that lack of a quorum wouldn’t therefore be able to keep people in prison, who are brought back when they violate their parole conditions. So this is a huge problem. And I think that it’s something that the Senate has to take into account as they look at the rest of the appointees
But Pritzker was then asked if it bothered him that “even some Democrats in the Senate are a little concerned about some of your nominees”…
It does. It bothers me that they’re listening to the Republican rhetoric, which is, once again, false. They’re telling false stories. It’s a lot of Facebook fakery about these folks who are nominated. These are people who have served well and honorably in their positions as we’ve appointed them, and deserve to be approved. […]
The stories that they’re telling are false about the people that are being brought up before the Prisoner Review Board. It’s easy to say this person did something wrong, we ought to keep them in prison, why would you offer parole to somebody? But the reality is that that’s exactly the function. Every person that gets brought up before the Prisoner Review Board is somebody who’s done something wrong in their lives. Sometimes they committed a violent crime, sometimes a non-violent crime. But whatever, they get brought up before the parole board when it’s appropriate, the Prisoner Review Board. And they have to make decisions, and they can’t always make the decision that the Republicans would like to have made. They should make rational decisions based upon the facts.
* Center Square…
State Sen. Jason Plummer, R-Edwardsville, serves on the Executive Appointments Committee and said Republicans are not spreading fake news. They’re highlighting high leniency rates of the nominees serving on the board leading to convicted criminals being let free.
“The governor has been playing games with this for over a year and the games have caught up with him,” Plummer told The Center Square. “The fact of the matter is he’s been skirting the constitutional process because he’s not comfortable that the Senate Democrats will even support his nominees because they’re so troubling.”
Republicans have highlighted for months how the governor has appointed members to the PRB, withdrawn them after the Senate doesn’t take them up, and then reappoints them, starting the clock over for when they must be approved.
Plummer said that wouldn’t be a problem if the governor put his ego aside and filled vacancies with appointees that get bipartisan support.
“And to sit down and work with the legislative branch to put forward people who represent mainstream values of Illinoisans,” Plummer said. “This isn’t a Republican or Democrat issue. This is just a common sense issue and the governor is failing this common sense issue.”
…Adding… Press release…
Restore Justice Illinois urges members of the Illinois State Senate to approve Governor JB Pritzker’s nominees to the Prisoner Review Board (PRB). The PRB is a vital component of state government, performing functions authorized by law and demanded by the Illinois Constitution. These duties include consideration of parole for people convicted before 1978 and vetting of clemency petitions in order to make recommendations to the Governor.
Earlier this week, state senators failed to confirm one Prisoner Review Board appointee, Jeff Mears, who had served in the role for one year. Now, five more of the Governor’s appointees await confirmation and could come before the Senate Executive Appointments committee on Monday, March 28 at 3:30 p.m. To perform their core functions, the PRB needs a quorum of eight members out of the total 15. If the Senate fails to approve the five members, it will only have three; each of the five remaining appointees must be confirmed for the Board to function.
At stake in the coming hearing are the fates of hundreds of individuals who await their last chance at early release. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, many incarcerated people and their families are desperate to reduce the final years of lengthy sentences to prevent what was a term-of-years sentence from becoming a death sentence due to inadequate access to health care and the risks inherent in congregate living situations.
Concerns voiced by some members of the State Senate are focused on votes taken by individual members in high-profile parole cases from the 1970s. Members are not being challenged on grounds relevant to their performance of the constitutionally mandated functions of parole and clemency reviews.
“No one is alleging Mears or others are corrupt. No one is saying they are not doing their jobs. This is not a ‘me too’ moment, nor is it an attack on member qualifications. No. These attacks are being made by politicians playing a game of arm-chair quarterback with real people’s lives,” Restore Justice Founder and Executive Director Jobi Cates said. “PRB members have a grave, even sacred duty to review the individual in front of them, weighing their rehabilitation and potential for redemption against the severity of their offense and likelihood of re-offense. To second guess decisions made after deep and serious review and debate to score political points is simply reckless.”
In addition to examining clemency applications and making recommendations to the Governor based on an intensive review of these applications, PRB members assess and vote on parole opportunities for people sentenced before 1978. In 1978, Illinois joined a minority of states that abolished discretionary parole. After abolishing discretionary parole, the Illinois prison population skyrocketed from roughly 6,000 incarcerated people in the 1970s to more than 48,000 at the peak in 2014. Since 2015, leaders in both parties, including Governor Bruce Rauner, Governor Pritzker, and members of the Illinois General Assembly have all prioritized reducing the prison population.
To make decisions, the PRB studies, considers, and debates all aspects of a person’s case and criminal history, and they consult with mental health experts. They seek input from victims, examine the person’s prison behavioral record, identify the likelihood of the person reoffending, and consider the person’s release plan. Victims are allowed to support or oppose release, and an opponent of the release is allowed to participate in the hearing.
There are currently 27,500 people in Illinois prisons, fewer than 50 of whom are parole-eligible. Those individuals have a legal right to a fair, thorough, and timely review. And, 20% of the people incarcerated in Illinois state prisons are elderly, some rehabilitated simply through the process of aging. It is not in Illinois’ interest to deny these people a chance to make a case for sentence reduction. People who serve long sentences for serious crimes rarely re-offend, and imprisoning eldelry people costs the state millions of dollars a year. Let’s instead allow the PRB to assess whether someone is capable of returning home and rejoining their community.
posted by Rich Miller
Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 9:52 am
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“ It does. It bothers me that they’re listening to the Republican rhetoric, which is, once again, false.”
It wasn’t just the moderates and targets who took a walk though. Most of the Black Caucus didn’t vote. Does Pritzker really think Mike Simmons, Kim Lightford and Emil Jones III are buying Republican rhetoric? Or is there another layer of conflict on this within Harmon’s caucus?
Comment by vern Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 9:58 am
Wow. This gov’s ego is continuing to cause him problems. He needs to learn to take his lumps and change course. He’s only drawing attention to an issue that isn’t going to reflect favorably on him. And why does he keep bringing up Rauner? I know his go-to Schlick is to blame the former gov and former potus for every problem, but this is an area that Rauner got right. He got his appointees approved on time, nearly all unanimously.
Comment by phenom_Anon Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 10:22 am
By is my phone autocorrecting shtick to Schlick?
Comment by phenom_Anon Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 10:24 am
==or is there another layer of conflict on this within Harmon’s caucus==
Yes.
Comment by Who else Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 10:27 am
==They’re highlighting high leniency rates of the nominees serving on the board leading to convicted criminals being let free.==
Uh?
Comment by Bigtwich Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 10:29 am
The only thing that has changed between now and Rauner’s time is that the GOP used to believe in criminal justice reform when it meant saving money but now their talking points have changed because once again they’re putting politics ahead of good governance. And the Dems are falling for it.
Comment by Long year Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 10:38 am
Decades ago, police caught a criminal that committed serious crimes in both Illinois and Iowa. An Illinois woman was the victim of home invasion, kidnapping, auto theft, rape, torture, murder, improper transportation of a body, trespassing, improper burial of a body, etc. The problem for both states was they could not prove what state the victim died in. Illinois gave the case to Iowa. Both states had enough that they could get life without parole, but in Iowa, life without parole means exactly that. In Illinois, there was a law that said after 20 years any prisoner could be paroled. I think it might get rid of a lot of controversy if Illinois adopted the Iowa standard on “life without parole”. Then people would not worry about people being appointed to the PRB letting out the worst criminals to commit more crimes.
Comment by DuPage Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 10:48 am
Breathtaking arrogance from the self described “most progressive Governor” who is incapable of reading the room about his failing approach to public safety.
His lack of respect for a co equal branch of government that has a Democratic supermajority and constitutional role to advise and consent is alarming.
The foot stomping and demagoguing those who have a different view is par for course.
Comment by Lucky Pierre Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 11:34 am
Senator Jason Plummer has a habit of spreading fake news. The legislative pay increases that weren’t are a good example. In fact, Jason Plummer is so into spreading fake news that he goes to extreme lengths of deleting social media comments and blocking those who call him out. So much for 1st Amendment rights.
Comment by Jason Bourne Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 11:43 am
Let’s all remember that Rauner’s agenda was to dramatically reduce the prison population in an effort to drive down state costs, close facilities and reduce AFSCME membership.
If he had his way, the state would have been closing prisons just for the sheer cost savings. And the GOP said nothing as they all stood behind him at all those Capitol steps news conferences.
For the sake of snarky over-analysis consider this …
Rauner’s higher education agenda was so bad it ultimately drove Terri Bryant to vote for a tax increase to save her regional economy.
His prisons policy probably would have forced her to switch parties.
Comment by Leigh John-Ella Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 11:43 am
We’ve heard the Gov’s position, when will The Senate President explain why he’s withholding votes? Only a single dem voted no; the others chose to “no vote”. It seems there is a coordinated effort to not allow approval, while also not casting a vote against the nominee. Why?
Comment by Lincoln Lad Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 11:55 am
I didn’t realize Rauner was such an influential member of the Senate Dem caucus. Based on some of these comments, it’s clear that he must control enough of the Super Majority’s votes to reject the Governor’s nominees.
Comment by fs Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 12:07 pm
Let’s all remember the effort to reduce prison population in Illinois is bipartisan
Prison population was 39,322 in March of 2019
December 2021 was 27,857
https://www2.illinois.gov/idoc/reportsandstatistics/Pages/Prison-Population-Data-Sets.aspx
Comment by Lucky Pierre Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 12:09 pm
===…when will The Senate President explain why he’s withholding votes?===
I land here as well.
What is going on with the caucus, is Harmon leading it, encouraging it, fighting it…
Is it mere purposeful silence to cause distress to the governor… and “why”
I’d like my own speculation to be removed and Harmon clarify…
Comment by Oswego Willy Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 12:11 pm
==Let’s all remember the effort to reduce prison population in Illinois is bipartisan–
Let’s all remember the effort to reduce prison population in Illinois was bipartisan.
Comment by Who else Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 2:22 pm
The Governor’s words bear repeating: “It’s easy to say this person did something wrong, we ought to keep them in prison, why would you offer parole to somebody? But the reality is that that’s exactly the function.”
This year, the Republican playbook states that anyone convicted of a crime should receive the maximum sentence and never be eligible for parole. And, the Dems have taken the bait and are trying to look “tough on crime.” As the Governor said, prisoners “get brought up before the parole board when it’s appropriate” and the PRB has to follow the law and the record. If the Republicans (or Democrats) don’t like it, they need to change the law, not deny qualified appointees a place on the PRB.
Comment by Pot calling kettle Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 4:34 pm
-Pot calling
If you are correct, and this reflects the decision basis of the Senate President… so much for representing the core dem constituency. There must be another constituency that matters more - the check book constituency?
Comment by Lincoln Lad Thursday, Mar 24, 22 @ 5:03 pm