Since 2016, communities across Illinois have been rigorously organizing to end the racist and classist use of money bond. Today, after years of work by the Coalition to End Money Bond and the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice, and following a nationwide uprising demanding racial justice last summer, the state legislature has just passed the Pretrial Fairness Act as part of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus’ criminal justice reform bill, HB 3653 SFA2. Among other things, this bill will overhaul the state’s pretrial justice system and end the use of money bond in its entirety. It also makes many people ineligible for pretrial incarceration. Governor JB Pritzker is expected to sign the bill into law.

More than a quarter of a million people are incarcerated in Illinois’s county jails every year, and 90% of them are locked up while still awaiting trial. The majority of people in Illinois jails are incarcerated only because they can’t afford to pay a money bond. For decades, wealth-based pretrial incarceration has destabilized communities across Illinois by causing people to lose their jobs, housing, and even custody of their children. The Pretrial Fairness Act’s passage will ensure that no one is caged in the state of Illinois simply because they cannot afford to pay a money bond.

This victory is only possible because of our robust and diverse movement for justice. Your support over the years made this dream a reality. People from across Illinois came together and told our legislators that we would no longer allow people to be jailed due to the size of their bank accounts. Because of your rallying, marching, contacting legislators, awareness building, and so much more, Illinois is going to end money bond and dramatically decrease the number of people jailed awaiting trial. Thank you.