News Roundup

On Monday, Illinois became the first state to eliminate cash bail. A provision of the state’s criminal justice reform law was supposed to eliminate the use of cash bail across the state on January 1, but was put on hold after prosecutors and sheriffs in 64 counties filed lawsuits challenging the constitutionality of the law. In a 5-2 ruling in July, the Illinois Supreme Court overturned a ruling by a Kankakee County judge that the law ending cash bail was unconstitutional. The bill does not limit its application to those newly charged with crimes. Defendants who are currently being held on cash bail are entitled to request a hearing to determine if they should be released. In fact, according to this story, a woman—who is alleged to have assaulted four Chicago police officers on Sunday—was released from custody on the day the cash bail was eliminated. Keep reading for more criminal law news. Sometimes inmates escape from custody... Less than a week after the recapture of a convicted murderer who escaped from prison in Pennsylvania and remained on the loose for two weeks, nine juveniles escaped from a Pennsylvania detention center after a riot broke out. Authorities believe the teens overpowered two guards during the riot and took their keys. All of the boys were found and taken into custody on Monday morning. …and sometimes they are accidentally released. A manhunt has commenced for an inmate who was accidentally released from a detention center in Indianapolis last week. According to this [...]