Raoul files intent to appeal judge's ruling on end of cash bail
SPRINGFIELD - Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul on Friday notified the state Supreme Court that he will appeal a Kankakee County judge's ruling that eliminating cash bail for criminal defendants is unconstitutional.
Raoul's notice requests the high court reverse Wednesday's ruling by Circuit Judge Thomas Cunnington. Cunnington decreed that the General Assembly violated the Constitution's separation of powers clause by eliminating cash bail with the SAFE-T Act. The issue of bail should be left to the judiciary, he said.
The rest of the SAFE-T Act, which updates rules and procedures for law enforcement and the courts, remains intact and takes effect Sunday.
Prosecutors and sheriffs from 64 counties - including McHenry and Will - filed the lawsuit challenging the bail provision, called the Pretrial Fairness Act. Cunnington's ruling did not include the injunction the plaintiffs requested, and it does not apply to courts in Cook, Lake, DuPage or Kane counties.
"We're monitoring developments, but here in Will County, we find Judge Cunnington's ruling applicable," said Assistant State's Attorney Kevin Meyers, adding that it will be status quo in county courts on Monday.
Cunnington agreed with the plaintiffs that the Constitution provides for bail as a means of ensuring a defendant's appearance at trial. Raoul and other defendants contend that reform is there as reassurance to the accused that they have an opportunity to remain free while awaiting trial.
Two state's attorneys in counties where cash bail would be eliminated - Robert Berlin, a Republican, in DuPage and Jamie Mosser, a Democrat, in Kane - asked the court to provide uniformity while it ponders Raoul's request to overturn the Kankakee County ruling.