North Cook News

Some provisions of the SAFE-T Act are being called unconstitutional and so the Act did not go into effect across most of the state as a legal challenge put them on hold earlier this month.

Judicial Circuit Chief Judge Thomas Cunnington ruled the pretrial release and bail reform provisions of the SAFE-T Act are unconstitutional, prompting the Kankakee County State’s Attorney’s Office to assert that these provisions of the SAFE-T Act will not go into effect in the 65 counties that were party to the lawsuit, KFVS reported. 

"It will be prudent for Cook County to prioritize fairness and the rule of law before proceeding down this path,” Cook County Commissioner Sean Morrison said in light of the ruling.

The measure originally was slated to go into effect at the start of the year, but it has been under legal challenge almost since it was signed. 

Attorney General Kwame Raoul, a Democrat who backed the bill, said he now intends to appeal the Circuit Court’s decision directly to the Illinois Supreme Court and is hoping to see the entire ruling overturned, KFVS said. 

As part of his statement in the wake of Cunnington’s ruling, Morrison said on Twitter he now believes Cook County government officials should delay the implementation of the measure "in the interest of fairness and equal treatment under the law,”