SPRINGFIELD, Ill. – It was only the first meeting, so there’s nothing new happening yet, but State Representative Jehan Gordon-Booth hopes the new Illinois Crime Reduction Task Force will work to try and reduce violent crime throughout Illinois.
Gordon-Booth co-chaired the Task Force’s first meeting Tuesday — a virtual one — and highlighted some recent work the legislature has already done, including in terms of witness protection.
“Often times, we need to be able to move them out of that particular neighborhood, and maybe even change the school that their children go to,” said Gordon-Booth (D-Peoria). “That is not done on a wish and a prayer only. We need resources to do that.”
Gordon-Booth says $40 million to $50 million is in the current state budget to help victims of violent crime, including witness protection.
Crime statistics in Illinois and in Chicago were also discussed, with a spike in recent years, after years of declines, but with arrest rates not as high as they were pre-COVID. The quality of the data was also discussed.
“The FBI…not only have they changed some of the databases that they’re actually putting the crime data in to, but they’ve also been reporting that many law enforcement agencies, in fact, haven’t been fully reporting it, including for 2020 and 2019,” said State Rep. Deanne Mazzochi (R-Elmhurst).
State officials say they believe the data is accurate, even if it is not good news. Officials also point out that many domestic violence cases go unreported.
As for future topics the task force will discuss, some may require even more state funding.
“Looking at the way workforce development and economics…the role that plays in crime prevention and crime reduction,” said Gordon-Booth, “as well as the economic role that crime plays into this whole thing into our communities.”
What wasn’t discussed during the first meeting was the controversy over cashless bail provisions of the SAFE-T Act.
Under the state law that created the task force, it was given until March 1, 2023 to make recommendations to the Illinois General Assembly.
