Carbondale Reporter

Violence and other crimes are on the rise in Illinois and Republican lawmakers said they've had enough of it and want to see changes made to make the state a safer place. They fear crime will only get worse under the SAFE-T Act.

The SAFE-T Act, or Safety, Accountability, Fairness and Equity-Today Act, made a number of changes that included creating a process to decertify police officers found to be abusive, require law enforcement to wear body cameras, limit when deadly force by a police officer is permissible, plus eliminate cash bail, according to Injustice Watch.

"As policies passed by the General Assembly and signed by the Governor have taken effect, we have seen the job of Law Enforcement Officers become more dangerous and harder to do," state Rep. Patrick Windhorst (R-Metropolis) said during an Jan. 5 news conference. "Criminals are acting more emboldened than ever before and repeat offenders are being let out of jail with little to no cash bail. We need to reflect on the rise in violent crimes and ask why are these things happening"

Windhorst said prior to the bill's passage, his Republican colleagues cautioned Democrats of the toll the law would have on both public safety and the ability of law enforcement to do their jobs. 

"Now, even though some of these provisions have not yet taken effect, we can see the impact of those provisions that have by reviewing publicly-available statistics and through conversations with law enforcement officers and groups," Windhorst said. "Throughout the last year we have confirmed many of these fears to be true. Crime rates, particularly violent crime rates, are up after decades of decline."

Windhorst has called on Democrats to help in their efforts to reverse the trend in rising crime. He's also sponsored legislation that would repeal the SAFE-T Act, according to his website. 

"We must change direction," he said. "We must work together to repeal the problematic parts of the last year's criminal justice bill and work to restore law and order in our communities. Our citizens deserve to live in safe communities and neighborhoods where they can live, work, play and raise their families without the fear of being the victim of violent crime."

The SAFE-T Act was passed during the last session of the General Assembly mainly along party lines.

It was signed into law by Gov. J.B. Pritzker last February.

Some of the provisions of the law won't take effect until next year and 2025.