Pritzker should embrace reforms of the Prisoner Review Board

Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s intentional efforts to refocus the Illinois Prisoner Review Board from protecting victims and communities to releasing more violent offenders is having devastating effects on new and old victims and the public’s safety.

For years, the board, which is responsible for parole and other early release and clemency decisions, has operated in a relatively consistent and prudent manner across various administrations.

However, when Gov. J.B. Pritzker took office, his administration began using it as a tool for their radical criminal justice agenda. From appointing activists without the needed experience to make life-and-death decisions, to leaving appointments and staff positions vacant, to reducing the board’s budget, the Pritzker administration has systematically moved its focus away from making the public’s safety its top priority.

With the change in its composition and direction from the administration, the Prisoner Review Board began making controversial decisions such as the release of murderers like Starved Rock killer Chester Weger and Paula Sims, who was convicted of murdering her children, along with two other offenders imprisoned for murdering police officers. They were so off the mark in their decision to release Ray Larsen, who was sentenced to up to 300 years for killing a teenage boy, that they eventually sent him back to jail once authorities finally found him after a couple of weeks on the lam. It isn’t just the egregiousness of the offenses, but also the sheer number of releases that are causing concern.

It had appeared that change was finally on the way in the wake of the devastating killing of 11-year-old Jayden Perkins, who was killed following multiple failures by the Pritzker administration’s Department of Corrections and the Prisoner Review Board that led to the release of his accused killer and serial domestic abuser, Crosetti Brand.

Elected officials, advocates and members of the media began joining the Illinois Senate Republicans in calls for reform. The Chicago Tribune Editorial Board closed a pointed piece with a call to action, writing: “The lapses that led to this horrific — and, yes, preventable — tragedy must be fully investigated and publicly shared. And then those tasked with the critical work of doing everything possible to protect women caught in these nightmares must make the necessary changes to close the systemic gaps that took Jayden Perkins from this city and his family.”

Faced with systemic failures at the Prisoner Review Board and the overwhelming shock and sorrow of Jayden’s slaying, the Illinois Senate moved forward in a collaborative and bipartisan manner to make reforms with a bill introduced by the Senate president because the safety and security of domestic violence victims is not a partisan issue.

The victim-focused reforms include requiring additional training for board members before they are allowed to vote, mandating victim notification of hearings and revocation of mandatory supervised release and allowing crime victims abused by incarcerated individuals to petition for orders of protection. The legislation also increases transparency by requiring certain board hearings to be broadcast live and mandates the minutes from hearings be posted online.

In a last ditch effort to shield his Prisoner Review Board and prevent reforms, a message was circulated from Pritzker’s office calling on Democrats to vote ‘no’ and accusing them of being so “eager to please their Republican friends” with legislation that was a “right-wing wolf in disingenuous transparency clothing.” The memo even grotesquely accused Republicans of “tak(ing) the opportunity presented to them by the tragedy of the little boy who was murdered for political gain.”

Undeterred by these shameless partisan tactics and strong in their conviction to make their communities a safer place for all, every single member of the Senate — both Republican and Democrat — voted for the reform bill, and it sailed through the House Judiciary Committee with no opposition.

Sadly, the story of this potentially lifesaving, bipartisan reform legislation ended there, as the Illinois House refused to call it for a final vote and adjourned without a single reform in place. Pritzker gloated about his victory in blocking reform saying, “There was no funding for any of the things that they suggested that we should do.”