Recent Blog Posts
Illinois' Safe Haven Laws and Child Abandonment
Safe Haven laws often go unnoticed. However, every now and then in the news a case pops up about a newborn baby abandoned by a parent, and subsequently discovered by a citizen. Recently, a 17-year-old mother from Jacksonville, Illinois was arrested for abandoning her newborn infant in a trash bin. Safe haven laws were created to provide a safe alternative to child abandonment that does not make a criminal act to abandon a child and allows for the baby to be legally adopted.
Under Illinois safe haven law, the Abandoned Newborn Infant Protection Act, a parent can anonymously and safely turn over their unwanted newborn baby to the police, medical professionals, firefighters and others, without any questions being asked. Since the creation of the law in 2001, the law has been used 98 times, but 72 illegal newborn abandonments have occurred in the state since the Illinois' safe haven law was implemented. In these cases, 35 of the children survived, but sadly 37 of these illegally abandoned children died before and after discovery.
Illinois Cases Highlight the Debate over HIV-Specific Criminal Laws
Here in Illinois, two cases have been in the media that have put a spotlight on Illinois law regarding the criminal transmission of HIV. Under Illinois law, a person who has HIV and engages in unprotected sex without first informing their partner that they are HIV-positive can be found guilty of committing a felony. Under this law, transmission of the HIV/AIDs disease does not have to occur for the HIV-positive partner to be found guilty of a felony. However, when prosecutors charge someone with breaking HIV-specific criminal laws, they must provide proof that the person who is HIV-positive intended to expose that person to HIV. One of the men now being tried under this law is subject to the old rules, which did not require that the HIV-positive transmitter actually intended to transmit the disease when engaging in intercourse or other activities.
Understanding Illinois' Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act
Sadly, Illinois is a state where fraud and deceptive business practices are a regular occurrence. Every day, the news media reports on new acts of fraud involving a wide range of actors including petty thieves, health care workers ,and even some of the most successful politicians and business people in the state. The Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act (CFA) is the Illinois state statute that provides protections against fraud, deceptive business practices, and other white collar crimes. Claims of fraud can be brought in civil courts by private individuals who claim harm as a result of another's fraudulent conduct/activities. Furthermore, criminal fraud claims can brought by the Illinois Attorney General's Office.
Dissolution of Marriage in Illinois
Going through a divorce can be a stressful and difficult time in life. The situation can become even more intense when trying to understand the different legal rules and statutes that govern divorce proceedings.
Here in Illinois, a divorce is legally referred to as the dissolution of marriage. Couples can either dissolve a divorce via the formal dissolution process or through the Illinois Simplified Joint Dissolution process. Both processes make filing for divorce a relatively painless procedure, especially with the assistance of an experienced family law attorney. Below are a few factors and procedural requirements that you should be aware of if you are ready to file for divorce in Illinois.
New Illinois Law Offers Automatic Expungements for Juvenile Arrestees
Expungement is the legal process of removing a person's arrest record from the Illinois Department of State Police and the records of the arresting authority. The expungement process ensures that your name is removed from the Circuit Clerk official index, and thus law enforcement professionals and employers cannot view the record of your arrest. Expungement is a great option for any person who has been arrested for a crime that they were never tried for or convicted of in court.
Juvenile arrests have become a big issue in Illinois. Some of these young adults are arrested because of bad decisions, as well as socio-economic issues that put them at a disadvantage. An arrest record can be an additional disadvantage for a young adult looking for gainful employment or other means of turning their life around. Even if the arrested person is not tried and found guilty of the crime, the record of the arrest can still greatly impede a person's opportunity to find employment. In order to give juvenile arrestees in Illinois a leg up, Illinois had enacted a new law that will provide for the automatic expungement of any juvenile who has been arrested but never charged for a crime.
Is Illinois Finally Ready for Criminal Sentencing Reform?
A call for criminal sentencing reform at the state and local levels is being spearheaded by both Republicans and Democrats in Illinois. In the past, the raising of criminal sentencing standards was used to respond to particularly atrocious crimes. However, the ad hoc increase in criminal sentencing standards has been blamed by many as causing the overcrowding of prisons, and the unnecessary extension of incarceration based on sometimes arbitrary sentencing standards. In Illinois specifically, the occurrence of a particularly bad crime has often been met with sentence enhancements as an easy fix to the underlying problem. However, the extreme physical and financial limitations of Illinois' correctional and criminal justice systems has required Illinois legislatures to reevaluate the knee jerk reactions that have motivated past sentence enhancements.
New Bill May Provide Opportunities for Job Seekers With Criminal Backgrounds
Criminal histories have served as a significant barrier for past criminals looking for a new start. Currently, almost every standard employment application requires an applicant to list past criminal history, including convictions. No matter how long ago criminal acts were performed, those who truthfully respond to such questions typically have their applications thrown in the trash. However, the civil rights organizations in Illinois are hoping to change this. Under the proposed Job Opportunities for Qualified Applicants Act, also known as the Ban-the-Box bill, job employers would not be able to question an applicant about criminal history until later in the employment process, after an employment application has been submitted.
The Job Opportunities for Qualified Applicants Act
Illinois Bans Ticket Quotas for Traffic Violations
New legislation signed into action by Governor Pat Quinn may quell some complaints about the high costs that come with operating a vehicle in Illinois. This legislation provides an official ban prohibiting all Illinois police departments from placing ticketing quotas on police officers. Governor Quinn stated his support for the legislation, which he believes will encourage officers to exercise their sound discretion and judgment when ticketing for traffic violations. In a recent press release Governor Quinn went on record stating that “This new law will improve safety and working conditions for police officers and prevent motorists from facing unnecessary anxiety when they encounter a police vehicle.”
Extensive Changes Could Be Coming to Illinois Divorce & Custody Laws
Two very different family law bills are in front of Illinois state legislatures for review and revision. The first bill, presented by Illinois State Representative Kelly Burke, is an expansive omnibus bill that creates new standards and regulations for the Illinois state family laws. The second bill, presented by Representative Cabello, sets more specific goals, including minimum parenting time standards for divorced couples. In the upcoming months state representatives here in Illinois could be forced to choose between these two different laws. These bills could have significant impact on various realms of family law, and it is important to consult with an experienced attorney to answer any legal questions that you may have.
Representative Burke's Omnibus Bill
Criminal Justice Reforms May Soon Be Coming to Illinois
On March 24, 2014, House Bill 5899 was approved by the Illinois House of Representatives. Presented by State Representative Tom Cross, the Bill's goal is to bring about sweeping reforms to the current criminal justice system in Illinois. The Bill's primary goal is to prevent and/or eliminate false convictions, identifications, and confessions that are allegedly present within criminal prosecutions throughout the state of Illinois. Though the Bill has not been officially passed into law, our criminal law attorneys are carefully watching the progression of the Bill in order to determine what impacts it will have on the current Illinois criminal justice system.
What is Criminal Justice Reform?
Criminal justice reform encompasses actions committed by social justice activists and legislators, intended to create a more balanced and fair criminal prosecution process at the local, state, and federal level. Criminal justice reform spans a wide range of criminal law issues including prisoners' rights, stop and frisk policies, and penal discretion, just to name a few.
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