Lake County Gazette

Illinois state Rep. David McSweeney (R-Barrington Hills) is stepping up his assault on Gov. J.B. Pritzker about what he sees as his soft approach to crimefighting.

“Gov. Pritzker is jeopardizing the safety of Illinois families by quietly commuting the sentences of murderers,” McSweeney told the Lake County Gazette in a recent interview. “This is unacceptable.”

The Republican’s mounting criticism stems from the way Pritzker has handled trying to slow the spread of COVID-19 within the walls of the state prison system. With the governor having already released thousands of prisoners, WAND-TV reporter, some of them with violent histories, McSweeney said enough is enough when it comes to potentially putting residents in jeopardy.

“Failed governor and tax raiser J.B. Pritzker is constantly on national TV promoting his comical and far-left 2024 presidential campaign,” he said in a post to Facebook on June 7. “He has also been quietly commuting the prison sentences of murderers. Where does Pritzker stand on defunding the police in Illinois?”

According to a WAND-TV report from April, among the prisoners released were at least 64 inmates serving time for murder and several sentenced to lifetime sentences. In addition, more than half of those released had more than a year to serve remaining on their term.

Through it all, WAND-TV reported the governor’s office has defended the releases as in keeping with precedent and “a clear process that has been used for decades when governors exercise their clemency powers." The article added the governor’s office is insisting that the Prisoner Review Board made recommendations to the governor with clemency petitions.

The Illinois Department of Corrections recently released a list that shows all of the inmates that have had their sentence commuted or were released since March 1 or around the time that widespread accounts of the coronavirus first started circulating, WAND-TV reported.