Court Rules Against No Cash Bail; State to Appeal Ruling

A Kankakee County circuit judge Wednesday ruled in favor of a lawsuit seeking retention of cash bail in Illinois.

Attorney General Kwame Raoul has already announced plans to appeal the decision to the Illinois Supreme Court.

Of the many provisions, the remaining measures that are a part of the SAFE-T Act, including no cash bail, were to take effect January 1. Wednesday's ruling halts the no cash bail provision in the counties where their state's attorneys participated in the suit. That includes Effingham County and our surrounding counties.

In the ruling, Circuit Judge Thomas Cunnington wrote, "Because, as the Illinois Supreme Court has determined, the administration of the justice system is an inherent power of the courts upon which the legislature may not infringe and the setting of bail falls within that administrative power, the appropriateness of bail rests with the authority of the court and may not be determined by legislative fiat."

Raoul said, " Although the court's decision is binding in the 64 cases that were consolidated in Kankakee County, it is important to note that it is not binding in any other case, including those involving criminal defendants in any of the state's 102 counties. To definitively resolve this challenge to the pretrial release portions of the SAFE-T Act, Governor Pritzker and I intend to appeal the circuit court's decision directly to the Illinois Supreme Court, where we will ask the court to reverse the circuit court's decision." House Speaker Chris Welch and Senate President Don Harmon are included in the request for the Supreme Court to reverse the circuit court decision.