Kane County sheriff's candidates on opioid crisis, SAFE-T Act
The two men running for Kane County Sheriff have concerns about the SAFE-T Act and support offering drug treatment programs for those in the county jail.
Incumbent Ron Hain, a Democrat first elected Kane County sheriff in 2018, is seeking his second term in office. Republican Jeff Bodin, a Kane County sheriff's deputy, hopes to unseat his boss. Hain has 24 years experience as a sworn officer, serving in a variety of roles in the sheriff's office, while Bodin has 15 years experience as a sheriff's deputy.
Here's where they stand on key issues.
Opioids
A May report from the Illinois Department of Public Health shows opioid-related deaths increased statewide by 2.3% - up from 2,944 in 2020 to 3,013 in 2021. Kane County reported 64 opioid-related deaths in 2020, 55 in 2019 and 62 in 2018, according to the Kane County coroner's website. A coroner's report for 2021 deaths provided by the sheriff's office shows 63 opioid-related deaths in 2021 through the end of November.
Hain and Bodin said they would continue efforts to combat the crisis.
Hain pointed to a drug-treatment program offered to inmates at the county jail as one method to curb overdose deaths. The 46-year-old Elburn resident said he also is working to make a treatment center available in Aurora so recently released inmates can continue to receive the help they need. He said those efforts have helped decrease the number of overdose deaths among those who had been held in the Kane County jail and cut recidivism.
In 2019, he started the "A Way Out" program to provide assistance to those seeking help within the community. The non-punitive program has provided assistance to more than 70 people since its inception, he said.
Bodin supports providing treatment programs to inmates while in custody, but said he would adopt a program similar to one used in DuPage County, which offers a more spiritual focus, he said. The 38-year-old Sugar Grove resident also said he would lobby to have a stronger federal presence at borders to prevent drugs from coming into the country.
"The federal government has been doing a terrible job of allowing drugs into the country by leaving the borders wide open," he said, adding that the U.S. could allow immigration without allowing drugs in.
He suggested part of the solution to the war on drugs involves stronger families and a strong economy that provides jobs in the United States rather than sending jobs overseas.
SAFE-T Act
Both Bodin and Hain said they are concerned about the SAFE-T Act provisions.
"It's not safe, in any regard, the way it is written," Hain said.
Hain said he's spent the last 2½ years understanding the act, how it will be implemented and making lawmakers aware of concerns about it. He estimates about one-fourth of the current jail population would be eligible for release under the cashless bail system that would take effect Jan. 1 under the law.
He said he has continued to "press the issue" but also has worked to be prepared for whatever changes may come Jan. 1.
Bodin said he believes the SAFE-T Act has some good aspects - such as mandating body cameras for police officers - while other parts of the Act are troubling. He is concerned the law limits what offenses would qualify for detention pretrial.
"It's going to be a disaster," he said, echoing critics' claims that some serious offenses may not be eligible for detention. "I'm fine with a low-level offense being released ... but to let a serious offender out of jail ... is going to be an absolute disaster."
State's attorneys across Illinois have filed lawsuits challenging the SAFE-T Act and legislators have been working to address some of the concerns raised about the law.