“What does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” With Micah 6:8 as the framework, Walter Boyd, Director of Criminal Justice Initiatives, provides a summary of several criminal justice bills that have brought some positive changes for persons in the criminal justice system. more

Prior to August 19, 2011, if a person’s RAP sheet consisted only of an arrest with no convictions s/he could petition the court to have the arrest[s] expunged, but if s/he had one conviction or more, any subsequent arrest that did not lead to a conviction could not be expunged/sealed from the person’s RAP sheet. This scenario has led to barriers in housing, employment, and educational opportunities for thousands of people based on misleading and/or misinterpreted RAP sheets. more

Illinois is just one signature away from becoming the 16th state without the death penalty. The General Assembly passed SB 3539 to repeal the death penalty on January 11, 2011. Now the legislation is awaiting final approval from Governor Quinn. more

If a loved one, a child perhaps, was in the heartbreaking throws of an addiction, wouldn’t you seek help in the form of treatment? more

This is the written version of an oral testimony given on Monday, April 26, 2010, at the James R. Thompson Center before the Appropriations/Public Safety Committee, Chaired by Rep. Karen A. Yarbrough and authorized by the General Assembly; committee members present were Rep. Constance Howard, Rep. Marlow H. Colvin, and Rep. Eddie Washington. This work is the product of members and staff of the Adult Redeploy Illinois Oversite Board, joined by Chicago Metropolis 20/20, Protestants for the Common Good, and the Partnership for Reentry and Justice. more

It’s about equality in representation: Prison districts should take their finger off the scale and return parity to our districts and fairness to our Government. more