ILACP Statement on Pretrial Fairness Act Ruling

Published Dec. 29, 2022

Good afternoon,

As many of you already heard, Kankakee County Judge Thomas Cunnington, declared the Pretrial Fairness Act (PFA), the part of the SAFE-T Act that addressed pretrial release provisions and eliminated cash bail, unconstitutional(Rowe v. Raoul). Judge Cunnington ruled the law violated the precedence of Separation of Power in the Illinois constitution.

Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul has stated that he intends to immediately appeal the decision to the Illinois Supreme Court.

As of now, the ruling applies to the 65 counties that filed suit and leads us to the question of the day, “What are the other thirty-seven counties going to do?”

There are a lot of variables at play, and we do not have a clear answer. For the counties that were party to the suit, they have been granted relief. The remaining counties will move forward with implementation unless the Illinois Supreme Court weighs in before Monday or their county’s Chief Judge and State's Attorney decide otherwise. We encourage members to consult with their legal counsel regarding this ruling as they represent your departments.

We are told several options are being considered, including the Attorney General filing a motion for a stay in the ruling. We are also hearing counties not party to the suit may seek declaratory relief. We know this is a subject of concern and anticipate the Illinois Supreme Court will weigh in and provide guidance in the near future.

The important thing for us to remember is that the ruling only affects the pretrial release provisions. Irrespective of what the Supreme Court may do regarding the PFA, the other provisions set for enactment on January 1st will go into effect unless they are appealed by the plaintiffs. This ruling does not affect any other provisions including but not limited to training requirements, body worn cameras, use of force prohibitions, resisting arrest and obstructing arrest changes, etc. Additionally, what is already in effect remains in effect.

Click here to read the ruling.

We will keep you informed as we learn more.

Sincerely,

ILACP Executive Director Kenny Winslow