Illinois Justice Project News Summary
Oct. 8 - 14, 2019
9-YEAR-OLD CHILD CHARGED WITH MURDER
Peoria Journal Star: "Child, 9, charged with murder in April mobile-home fire in Goodfield" . . . "(Woodford County State's Attorney Greg) Minger said he went through various authoritative reports about the blaze numerous times before he decided to proceed with prosecution. 'It was a heavy decision,' he said. 'It’s a tragedy, but at the end of the day it’s charging a very young person with one of the most serious crimes we have. But I just think it needs to be done at this point, for finality.'"
Associated Press: "9-year-old charged with murder in 5 Illinois fire deaths" . . . "No child as young as this one has been accused in a mass killing since at least 2006, according to the AP/USATODAY/Northeastern University mass murder database. It tracks all U.S. homicides since then in which four or more people were killed (not including the offender) over a short period of time (24 hours), regardless of weapon, location, victim-offender relationship or motive."
CBS News: "Mother of 9-year-old charged with setting house fire that killed 5: He's not a 'monster'" . . . "For the first time, we are hearing from the family of a 9-year-old boy accused of intentionally setting a fire to the family home. Katie Alwood fought back tears as she spoke about her son. . . "
Time: "'Simply Shocking.' Illinois Prosecutors Charge Child, 9, With 5 Counts of Murder Over April House Fire" . . . "Betsy Clarke, founder and President of the Illinois-based Juvenile Justice Initiative, tells TIME that the prosecutors’ decision to charge the 9-year-old in the first place is 'shocking,' considering research that suggests kids at that age are not aware of the seriousness of their actions."
USA Today: "'Extremely uncommon': 9-year-old charged with murder after 5 die in Illinois fire"
Chicago Tribune: "9-year-old central Illinois boy charged with murder in fatal fire that killed 5 ‘made a terrible mistake,’ but he’s ‘not a monster,’ mom says" . . . "The 9-year-old is now both ward of the state and an accused murderer"
Chicago Tribune editorial: "A 9-year-old charged with murder? The focus should be on healing, not punishment." . . . "It should be up to case workers and other experts to determine the best course of action. The state’s posture toward him should be one of healing and protection, not punishment — to prevent this boy from spiraling further and to prevent this tragic fire from destroying another life."
Peoria Journal Star columnist Phil Luciano: "Brother of Goodfield fire victim wishes 9-year-old could be imprisoned" . . . "'I don’t think he deserves leniency,' John Wall says."
Peoria Journal Star column by Nick Vlahos: "Boy’s family helps turn Goodfield murder case into a circus" . . . "The quiet manner in which Woodford County State’s Attorney Greg Minger pursued prosecution of this case contrasts vividly with the way the boy’s mother and other relatives handled the aftermath."
LAQUAN McDONALD
WBEZ: "Lightfoot Releases Records On Police ‘Cover-up’ For Officer Who Killed Laquan McDonald" . . . "Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s administration Wednesday afternoon released thousands of pages of long-hidden records from the city’s investigation of an alleged cover-up for Jason Van Dyke, the officer sent to prison for killing Laquan McDonald in 2014."
Chicago Sun-Times: "Van Dyke lied, disobeyed orders during McDonald investigation, IG says" . . . "Long before the Laquan McDonald shooting video was made public, lawyers for the city knew it could be a problem."
Chicago Tribune: "City releases files from watchdog’s probe of fatal Chicago police shooting of Laquan McDonald"
Chicago Sun-Times editorial: "The travesty of the killing of Laquan McDonald can no longer be denied"
CPD SUPERINTENDENT EDDIE JOHNSON
Chicago Sun-Times: "Top cop Johnson has lost public trust after role in Laquan McDonald shooting probe revealed, black aldermen say"
WBEZ by Chip Mitchell: "Newly Released Documents Detail Top Cop’s Role In Shooting That Shook Chicago"
Chicago Sun-Times: "Facing criticism, Chicago Police Supt. Eddie Johnson goes on the defense over inspector general’s Laquan McDonald report"
Chicago Tribune: "Chicago police Superintendent Eddie Johnson: ‘I never thought and never said the shooting of Laquan McDonald was justified’"
Chicago Sun-Times editorial: "Police Supt. Eddie Johnson’s failure to speak up" . . . "But there’s no getting around Johnson’s silence in that room on that day in 2015. It would have been better had he spoken up, as a number of African American aldermen said on Thursday, and the mayor will have to weigh the damage done."
CHICAGO POLICE CLEARANCE RATES
WBEZ by Chip Mitchell: "Chicago’s Dismal Murder Solve Rate Even Worse When Victims Are Black" . . . "The data, obtained by WBEZ under Illinois’ open-records law, show the city had 849 murders between the beginning of 2018 and this past July. When the victim was white, 47% of the cases were solved during those same 19 months. For Hispanics, the rate was about 33%. When the victim was African American, it was less than 22%."
CHICAGO POLICE
Chicago Sun-Times by Fran Spielman: "$4.9 million settlement tied to high-speed police pursuit that led to deaths of 27-year-old woman, off-duty cop" . . . "The latest in a seemingly endless parade of settlements tied to alleged police misconduct will go to the family of Chequita Adams. She died in the June 2017 crash, along with off-duty Chicago Police Officer Taylor Clark."
Chicago Tribune: "$4.9 million settlement considered for family of woman killed in 2017 crash with off-duty Chicago cop"
Chicago Tribune: "Chicago police misused placards to park for free near Bears, Cubs games, IG investigation finds"
Chicago Tribune: "2 gang officers used police powers ‘to lie, cheat and steal,’ prosecutors allege as trial starts in earnest"
Chicago Sun-Times: "Mayor Lori Lightfoot to reopen detective bureaus, put 151 cops back on street under new plan"
Chicago Tribune: "Chicago cop Dante Servin was acquitted of fatally shooting Rekia Boyd in a controversial ruling. Now he wants the criminal charges erased from his record."
COURTS
Champaign-Urbana News-Gazette column by Jim Dey: "With one judge ousted for lying to police, what’s fate of the second?" . . . "What happened to former Circuit Judge Patrick O’Shea must have sent shivers down current Circuit Judge Ronald Duebbert’s spine."
WBEZ by Dave McKinney: "The Justice & The Alderman: The Ethical Conundrum Of A Longtime Illinois Power Couple"
COURT FINES AND FEES
WGLT, ISU public radio, by Mary Cullen: 3-part series was prepared as a reporting project for John Jay/Arnold Fines & Fees Justice Reporting Fellowship.
BOND REFORM
Chicago Sun-Times column by Laura Washington: "Criminal justice reformers are making the case to end cash bail in Illinois" . . . "In 2017, Timothy Evans, the chief judge of the Cook County Circuit Court, issued an order requiring judges considering bail to determine whether the 'defendant has the present ability to pay the amount necessary.' Defendants awaiting trial should not be held hostage by poverty. Those reforms don’t go far enough, because our justice system harbors another kind of violence, says Sharone Mitchell Jr., deputy director of the Illinois Justice Project. It’s violence 'when an individual looks at his public defender and says, Hey, I don’t think I did this crime, but I can’t go back to county (jail). I’m going to plead guilty and do my time,' said Mitchell, a former trial attorney at the Cook County public defender’s office."
WGN-TV: "The politics of bail reform: Part I" . . . "Police officials say changes to Cook County’s bail system are partly to blame. But is that true?"
WGN-TV: "The politics of bail reform: Part II" . . . "Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx said she knows Johnson is frustrated, and agrees dangerous individuals should be held without bail. But the issue, she says, is more complicated than it might initially appear. For one, people who are arrested have a constitutional right to bail. The only reason they should be held in jail before trial is if they are truly dangerous, or history indicates they are unlikely to show back up to court."
REENTRY
John Howard Association: "The Trouble with Reentry: Five Takeaways from Working with People Returning to Chicago from Prison"
Belleville News-Democrat: "Granite City can’t evict 2 families under crime-free housing"
ILLINOIS PRISONER REVIEW BOARD
Aurora Beacon-News: "Illinois Prisoner Review Board hears clemency case for Montgomery cancer patient in prison after he ordered 42 pounds of THC-infused chocolate"
COOK COUNTY JAIL
Chicago Sun-Times column by Jesse Jackson: "What I learn when I have lunch at Cook County Jail"
GUNS
NPR Illinois: "Illinois Voters Support More Statewide Gun Regulation, Survey Shows" . . . "The results show 92 percent of Illinoisans support making mental health background checks more stringent. That’s about the same number as a similar survey from last year. Another 74 percent back the idea of banning assault weapons, a big jump from 2018."
LEGISLATION
WBBM Newsradio: "Proposal Would Revive Death Penalty In Illinois" . . . "An opponent of the death penalty says a proposal to bring it back in Illinois isn't supported by the public or research. Locke Bowman, director of the MacArthur Justice Center at Northwestern Law School, said by the time the state abolished capital punishment in 2011 it was widely discredited because more people had been released for wrongful convictions than executed."
IMMIGRATION
Chicago Tribune: "ICE detainees and their jailers near Chicago get surprise visit from Latino lawmakers to view conditions"
AROUND THE STATE
Peoria Journal Star: "The future of criminal justice reform could be written in Illinois" . . . "Gathered in a conference room in Westlake Hall on Wednesday morning, area politicians and interested parties gathered to discuss criminal justice reform. U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin and U.S. Rep. Darin LaHood spoke about reform on the national level while State Rep. Jehan Gordon-Booth and Peoria County Sheriff Brian Asbell spoke about what is being done locally, and plans for the future."
Peoria Journal Star: "Teen accused of BU party murders faces additional charges for fight at JDC"
Decatur Herald & Review: "Facing tight budget, Decatur creates civilian officer jobs over police union objections"
WCIA-TV, Champaign-Urbana: "Police join w/local shop to promote gun safety"
Peoria Journal Star: "Woman found dead in cell at Henry County Jail"
Rockford Register Star: "Coach seeks student, community help raising cash for 7th Rockford police dog"
Champaign-Urbana News-Gazette: "Champaign County Board's facilities committee unanimously endorses consolidation of jails"
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