Lake County Gazette

Lake County Republicans took to Facebook to express their displeasure with the SAFE-T Act.

"Chicago and Cook County Democrats are putting violent criminals back on the street, with the support of Lake County Democrats," the group posted. "Then those criminals come here and make our neighborhoods and communities less safe. If you have a problem with this, don’t be a spectator in this election."

The post included a link to potential volunteers.

Many Republicans and multiple state's attorneys have been vocal in their opposition to the SAFE-T Act, a sweeping criminal justice reform package signed into law by Gov. J.B. Pritzker last year, Chicago City Wire reported. Many critics of the bill have spoken out against a provision that will eliminate cash bail in the state, effective Jan. 1.

One provision of the SAFE-T Act that took effect in January of this year allows defendants who are awaiting trial on home confinement to move freely, without electronic monitoring, two days a week, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. The defendants are supposed to use that time to look for employment, attend school, undergo treatment for a drug addiction or mental illness, or grocery shop.

However, in the first three months of 2022, around two dozen people were arrested in Cook County during their "essential movement" days. Democratic Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart has called for an end to the "essential movement" provision, stating, “At a bare minimum, they should say, ‘If you’re charged with a violent offense, and you’re given home monitoring, you don’t get to wander around free for two days a week.'"

Almost every Illinois Democrat supported the bill, while all Republicans voted no, according to a release.

The State Journal-Register reported that an Illinois judge could still decide if a person is a “risk of endangerment” for the community and needs to stay in prison.