Yesterday, more than 400 people from all over Illinois converged on the Capitol in Springfield to defend the Pretrial Fairness Act from rollbacks. Today, the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice is re-launching our Principles of Pretrial Reform in Illinois with two U.S. congresspeople, 21 Illinois state senators and representatives, and 23 county city officials from across Illinois.

In 2017, the Coalition to End Money Bond introduced the Principles of Pretrial Reform as a set of guidelines to shape reform efforts in Cook County. Since then, the Principles have been refined by the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice and guided efforts to achieve pretrial justice throughout Illinois. In 2021, the Principles provided the foundation for the Pretrial Fairness Act, which will make Illinois the first state to abolish money bond in 2023. 

The Principles identify the importance of not only ending wealth-based jailing in our state but also the importance of reducing pretrial jailing and avoiding the expansion of practices that would replicate the harms of pretrial incarceration or hinder the success of people awaiting trial in the community.

As the Illinois legislature considers amendments to the Pretrial Fairness Act to help counties across the state successfully implement the law, it is critical that any and all changes remain true to the principles that inspired this transformative law. We deeply appreciate every organization and individual who signed on in support of the principles and who will fight for the Pretrial Fairness Act to deliver its intended benefits to communities across our state.

If your organization or office would like to endorse these Principles, please email info@endmoneybond.org.