{"id":3762,"date":"2021-02-23T15:56:42","date_gmt":"2021-02-23T15:56:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chicagocouncil.org\/staging\/1601\/?p=3762"},"modified":"2021-02-23T16:01:23","modified_gmt":"2021-02-23T16:01:23","slug":"victory-pritzker-abolishes-money-bail-by-signing-hb-3653-the-safe-t-act","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chicagocouncil.org\/staging\/1601\/victory-pritzker-abolishes-money-bail-by-signing-hb-3653-the-safe-t-act\/","title":{"rendered":"VICTORY: Governor Pritzker Abolishes Money Bail by Signing HB 3653 \u2013 The SAFE-T Act \u2013 into Law"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

On Monday, February 22, 2021, Governor Pritzker signed\u00a0HB 3653 SFA2<\/span><\/a>: the SAFE-T (Safety, Accountability, Fairness and Equity \u2013 Today) Act.<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The bill was sponsored in the 101st General Assembly by Senator Robert Peters, Senator Elgie Sims, and Representative Justin Slaughter as part of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus\u2019 comprehensive legislative response to anti-Black racial violence after the police killing of George Floyd.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The SAFE-T Act creates reforms in several other areas of the Illinois criminal justice system\u2014many of which Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts<\/span><\/a> and the Chicago Council of Lawyers have long championed, such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Police Accountability & Oversight<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

The SAFE-T Act includes several reforms to Illinois\u2019 policing processes, such as: prohibiting records destruction and retaliation against someone for reporting, cooperating, or testifying against an officer in investigations; removing sworn affidavit requirements from all police<\/a> collective bargaining agreements; mandating the use of body-warn cameras by all police; and much more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Right to Accessible Communication<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Previously, Illinois law stated that people who have been arrested should generally have access to a phone<\/a> without one-hour, or whenever is \u201creasonable.\u201d HB 3653 solidifies the rights of arrested people to communicate with attorneys or family from the police station \u2013 free of charge \u2013 as soon as possible, but within 3-hours.<\/em> It also allows people who have been arrested access to retrieve contacts from their cellphone and make at least three calls. Signs must be in place in police stations to inform arrestees of their rights and of the number for an appointed public defender, if applicable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Restoration of Driving Privileges<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

With the SAFE-T Act, Illinois will no longer suspend driver\u2019s licenses for unpaid fines and fees from traffic violations and automated camera tickets. This reform builds on the work of the Transit Table Coalition<\/a>, which advocated for the License to Work Act<\/a> that eliminated driver\u2019s license suspensions as penalties for unpaid parking tickets and some other non-moving violations in 2020.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

People whose driver\u2019s licenses have been suspended, canceled, or prohibited due to failure to pay any fine or penalty for traffic violations and automated speed or red light camera tickets can now have them restored and renewed; the legislation prevents future license holds\/suspensions for these violations and unpaid abandoned vehicle fines or fees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pretrial Fairness Act<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Our collaboration partner, Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts, is a founding member of the\u00a0Coalition to End Money Bond<\/a>; included in this legislation is the Pretrial Fairness Act, which \u2013 along with abolishing money bond \u2013 creates a fairer pretrial system by:<\/p>\n\n\n\n