Kendall County Times

During a recent press conference, Illinois state Rep. Dan Ugaste (R-Geneva) stressed the importance of cash bail for a healthy criminal justice system, a report from The Center Square said.

“In our bill, an accused ability to pay would be a factor to be considered,” Ugaste said, referring to the House GOP Public Safety Group. “Bail must be the least restricted means to assure public safety and protect victims.”

The group first began meeting in January with the intent of addressing crime in Illinois, the report said. Its bills fall into three categories: protecting victims of crime, the real pretrial fairness act, and recruiting and retaining law enforcement officers.

Many of the more than 20 measures put forth by the group would alter aspects of the highly controversial SAFE-T Act, including reinstating cash bail statewide.

The legality of eliminating cash bail is still being considered by the Illinois Supreme Court following arguments earlier in 2023. State Democrats passed the SAFE-T Act in January 2021. Its most controversial measure, which essentially instates a statewide ban on pretrial cash bail, was initially expected to go into effect on Jan. 1 of this year, but it was halted on Dec. 31 by the state Supreme Court to give them time to debate its legality.

Other bills promoted by the House GOP Public Safety Group include House Bills 3209 and 3352. HB3209 would prevent victims of crimes from being forced to testify at pretrial detention hearings. HB3352 expands the offenses for which an arrestee must provide a DNA sample to include aggravated domestic battery and all forceful felonies.

“If we don’t change course now, we may never recover,” state Rep. Dennis Tipsword (R-Metamora), who also serves as a chief deputy for the Woodford County Sheriff's Department, said in the report. “In fact, I argue the damage already done will take a generation to correct. We have conditioned criminals to believe that there are no consequences for acting out. This must change.”