Illinois school district drops controversial eavesdropping case against former student

By Austin Berg

11/15/2018

Prosecution lawyers for an Illinois school district have decided not to move forward with their case against Paul Boron, who was charged with felony eavesdropping at age 13 for recording audio of a meeting with his middle school principal.

TAGS: criminal justice reform, eavesdropping, Paul Boron

These Illinois Halloween laws might scare you

By Austin Berg, Joe Barnas

10/18/2018

Scraping through a few hundred municipal codes in Illinois didn’t turn up any trick-or-treat ordinances allowing for jail time. But fines associated with age limits, curfews, masks and more were aplenty.

TAGS: Belleville, criminal justice reform, decatur, overcriminalization

Rauner signs bill removing barriers for human trafficking survivors

By Janelle Cammenga

09/04/2018

Gov. Bruce Rauner has signed into law a measure allowing human trafficking survivors to apply to have their criminal records sealed for offences committed under coercion.

TAGS: Bruce Rauner, criminal justice reform, human trafficking, Toi Hutchinson

Momentum builds for pardon of Peoria man who served 15 years for drug offense

By Joe Kaiser

08/28/2018

Jason Spyres was arrested on drug charges nearly 20 years ago. In the years since, he’s been on a path of personal success and growth. A pardon from Gov. Bruce Rauner should follow.

TAGS: criminal justice reform, marijuana, sentencing reform

Rauner signs bill allowing medical marijuana alternative for opioid prescriptions

By Vincent Caruso

08/28/2018

The Alternative to Opioids Act will give more Illinoisans the option to treat pain with medical marijuana.

TAGS: Bruce Rauner, criminal justice reform, decriminalization, marijuana, opioid, Toi Hutchinson

Chicago police caught using ‘bait truck’ in South Side neighborhood

By Vincent Caruso

08/09/2018

In what critics have decried as an inappropriate use of scarce public safety resources, Chicago police officials parked a “bait truck” reportedly filled with boxes of Nike sneakers in the city’s Englewood neighborhood.

TAGS: Chicago, CPD: Chicago Police Department, criminal justice reform

Report: Recidivism to cost Illinois more than $13B over next 5 years

By Vincent Caruso

08/03/2018

Even a small decrease in the recidivism rate can yield millions of dollars in taxpayer savings while improving public safety.

TAGS: criminal justice reform, prison reform, recidivism

Illinois’ fireworks ban could land you in jail

By Joe Barnas

06/29/2018

Illinois remains one of only four states to impose severe restrictions on the purchase and use of consumer fireworks.

TAGS: criminal justice reform, fireworks ban, regulations

Manteno case sheds light on absurdity, severity of Illinois’ eavesdropping law

By Austin Berg

06/23/2018

Illinois’ eavesdropping law is clear as mud on the matter of recording authority figures, which has led to a number of contentious legal battles and attempts at reform in recent years. Boron is not alone.

TAGS: criminal justice reform, eavesdropping

Illinois 13-year-old charged with eavesdropping felony for recording meeting with principal

By Austin Berg

06/21/2018

Illinois’ eavesdropping law is one of the nation’s most severe, but leaves ample room for ambiguity.

TAGS: criminal justice reform, eavesdropping