Misinformation clouds understanding of law

In recent weeks, there has been debate surrounding the SAFE-T Act that Gov. Pritzker signed into law last year. This conversation has been clouded by a misinformation campaign that is funded by one of Trump's largest donors, Richard Uihlein.

Much of this misinformation has focused on the pretrial fairness provisions that ended the state's use of money bond. The truth is that with the SAFE-T Act, people charged with a crime will now undergo a robust hearing to determine whether or not they can safely be released while awaiting their trial. Having money will no longer buy dangerous criminals pretrial freedom.

In a community with no SAFE-T Act, those who are incarcerated over small non-violent crimes can spend weeks to months behind bars awaiting trial while their jobs, houses, and more can be lost, affecting families' or individuals' finances as well as local economies. It costs, on average, $40,567 of taxpayers' dollars to keep someone in jail while they await trial.

If people who don't pose a danger to others were allowed to wait for their trial outside of jail, they would not only be saving taxpayers' dollars but also continuing to support our local economy.

I chose to write this article about the facts to encourage readers to learn more about the SAFE-T Act. Many of us may never be in circumstances where we will encounter these issues and it is hard for many of us to imagine what the ramifications of these situations can be for both the accused and for the justice system.

I feel strongly that our justice system can be improved. Nothing is ever perfect. However, I believe the SAFE-T Act is a step in the right direction for Illinois in working to provide a just and fair system for every person facing criminal charges.

Quinlan Kyp-Johnson

Batavia