Illinois Valley Times

Whether or not a ban on certain firearms in Illinois and ending cash bail is constitutional is now in the hands of the Illinois Supreme Court.

Illinois state Rep. John Cabello (Machesney Park) released a statement in a June 21 news release about the two high-profile cases now before the state Supreme Court.

"Major decisions on two controversial laws lay before the Illinois Supreme Court, as plaintiffs await rulings on the Constitutionality of the recently passed and signed firearms ban and the provision that ends cash bail as part of the 2021 SAFE-T Act passed by Democrats," Cabello said in the statement. "Rulings have been expected for months in both cases. House Republicans vigorously opposed the end of cash bail, arguing the policy will lead to recidivism, increased crime, and reduced public safety."

In his release, Cabello shared a link to an article from The Center Square on the topic. The article noted that the state Supreme Court released opinions on four cases on June 17 and another earlier this month, but so far they had not revealed their stance on the no-cash bail part of the SAFE-T Act, which was put on hold after a Kankakee court ruling. The state Supreme Court held arguments on that case back in March.

During the previously mentioned arguments on cash bail, The Center Square offered quotes from the hearing held on March 14.

"Arguments in front of the full Illinois Supreme Court panel of seven Tuesday morning lasted about 45 minutes," The Center Square said. "Justice Lisa Holder White didn't hesitate getting directly into questions for the state's Deputy Solicitor General Alex Hemmer.

'In the past we've seen where changes have been made with respect to who is entitled to bail made through constitutional amendment, why didn't that happen here and should it have,' White asked.

'No, your honor, it should not have,' Hemmer said. 'The General Assembly was not required to put these changes to voters in a constitutional referendum.'"

In May, the court heard a challenge from state Rep. Dan Caulkins (R-Decatur). A decision in that case has not yet been issued either. Caulkins told The Center Square that the decision in his case should not have to wait for a federal court to make a decision.

"There’s some speculation that the Illinois Supreme Court will hold off issuing their opinion, waiting to see what the federal court system, the Seventh Circuit [U.S. Court of Appeals] and then the U.S. Supreme Court have to say about this law," he said. "That would alleviate some of their problems if there's a decision made on the federal side."

In a June 20 news release, Cabello shared a link to an NBC Chicago story on the shootings that occurred over the Father's Day weekend.

"75 people were shot with 13 people losing their lives due to out of control gun violence in the city of Chicago over the weekend," Cabello said. "The citizens of Illinois are being subjected to constant violence on our streets as Illinois Democrats refuse to acknowledge their soft-on-crime approach to criminal justice isn't working."