Jennifer Bos, the heartbroken mother of Megan Bos, has erupted in outrage against Illinois’ controversial Safe-T Act and the state’s handling of criminal illegal immigrants.
Megan, 37, was found concealed in a bleach-filled trash can, left for months in the backyard of Jose Luis Mendoza-Gonzalez, a Mexican illegal alien living in Waukegan.
Mendoza-Gonzalez was charged with concealment of death, abuse of a corpse and obstructing justice, but was freed within 24 hours under the law that eliminated cash bail and restricts who can be held before trial.
Passed in 2021, the SAFE-T Act was promoted as a reform to address injustices by abolishing cash bail and limiting pretrial detention to the “most serious” crimes. But cases like Megan’s have sparked backlash from victims’ families and lawmakers, who argue the law sacrifices public safety and strips judges of critical authority.
Bos expressed shock and frustration over Mendoza-Gonzalez’s release, calling the law a dangerous failure that leaves justice hanging by a thread.
“They released him after the first appearance in court,” Bos told the Lake County Gazatte. “I realized that not only did they release him without knowing if he killed her and without any investigation, but they released him even though he is here every single day breaking a federal law. It just blew my mind. I could not comprehend how that happened. I never expected him to be walking free the next day.”
Mendoza-Gonzalez told investigators that Megan died from a drug overdose at his home in mid-February, after which he destroyed her cell phone and placed her body in a bleach-filled trash can in his backyard.
Her body was not located in Mendoza-Gonzalez’s back yard until the second week of April.
While Megan was missing Bos and her family circulated fliers seeking information on her whereabouts.
Bos criticized the failure to conduct a thorough investigation to rule out homicide, even if related to providing drugs to Megan, before Mendoza-Gonzalez’s release.
"There has been no other side of the story,” she said. “There's nobody who can tell any side of this story. He's had months to get rid of evidence. I think you would think that at least a slight amount of investigation.”
Despite initial reports from authorities, lingering doubts and unanswered questions continue to cast a shadow over the case.
“Everybody said he didn't kill her, there was no trauma,” Bos said. “But to this day, we still don't even know for sure. Obviously, her toxicology report came back and there are illegal drugs there, very likely, but there also is another option, according to the coroner. And even if it was the drugs, we don't know if he gave them to her."
Bos also highlighted the increasing threat of drug-induced homicide.
"Drug-induced homicide is becoming more common, and it's important because there is no safe dose of fentanyl,” she said. “I have a friend who's very involved in the drug-induced homicide circle. She lost her son a couple of years ago to a pill laced with fentanyl. She told me it's not an overdose, it's a poisoning. That's the truth. Anyone selling this is selling death, and they know it. They should be held responsible."
Her criticism extended to how the SAFE-T Act has impacted justice in her daughter’s case. Bos expressed disbelief that someone could hide a body for months, destroy evidence and still walk free without consequences.
Local officials, including Antioch Mayor Scott Gartner and State Rep. Tom Weber (R-Fox Lake), have also called for reform or repeal of the Safe-T Act’s provisions in the wake of Mendoza-Gonzalez’s case, citing its impact on public safety and law enforcement effectiveness.
Bos warned that unless the law is changed, cases like her daughter’s could become the blueprint for future offenders to escape justice.
“He's managed to destroy all of the evidence by having her for so long,” Bos said. “He is just going to get away with it if things are left the way they are. We don't have any laws that cover what he did. That is why it was always so important to me to speak out about this and to change this, because that's a dangerous precedent. The only reason he was let loose was because of the SAFE-T Act, because of the Pretrial Fairness Act. It's not fair. It's not fair to anyone but the person who committed the crime.”
At a loss for what to do while Mendoza-Gonzalez remained free, Bos saw an opportunity when she found herself near federal lawmakers.
Dawn Beitzel-Allen, Terry Almanza, founder of Drug Induced Homicide Inc., and Jennifer Bos attend the presidential signing of the Halt Fentanyl Act. (Jennifer Bos)
She recounted an unexpected encounter with former President Donald Trump, which occurred shortly before Mendoza-Gonzalez was picked up by federal immigration authorities.
Bos recalled attending the bill signing, describing the experience. Seated just a few feet from House Speaker Mike Johnson, she quickly jotted a note with her contact information and passed it along to him, hoping to draw attention to her daughter's case.
“I started working my way towards where President Trump was,” Bos said.
Determined to share her story, she seized the moment as the former president prepared to leave the room.
“As he was walking out of the room, I just threw my arm up in the air and I yelled for him, ‘Mr. President! Mr. President!’ and I waved my hand. He turned around and he looked at me,” Bos said.
Bos briefly told Trump that her daughter had gone missing earlier that year and was later found dead, her body concealed in a garbage can behind the home of an illegal immigrant who was released under Illinois’ Safe-T Act.
According to Bos, Trump responded with a remark referencing the man’s immigration status and as he walked away, he turned back once more after hearing the full weight of her story.
“He turned and started walking away, and then he turned around again,” she said.
Video of the interaction shows Trump telling her, “Watch what happens.”
Still from video footage of President Donald Trump pausing to speak with Jennifer Bos. (Jennifer Bos)
Just three days later, Mendoza-Gonzalez was taken into custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Chicago.
Though Bos said there are complications given Mendoza-Gonzalez’s immigration status and the involvement of ICE, she is happy he is off the streets.
“Having him picked up by ICE complicates him being tried for this crime,” she said. “I didn’t call ICE in the first place because I wanted him to stand trial for this crime. I wanted him to serve whatever time he would be sentenced and then be deported. The possibility of ICE involvement means he could be deported in a week or in two years. You just don’t know. It’s a case-by-case situation with them.”
Now, Bos emphasized that the fight is far from over and called for sweeping reforms to prevent similar injustices.
In Megan’s case, Mendoza-Gonzalez was charged with Class 4 felonies, offenses that, under the SAFE-T Act, are considered non-detainable. As a result, he was released pretrial despite the severity of the allegations and his illegal immigration status.
“I would like to see all Class Four felonies included in detainable charges, first of all,” she said. “I would like the judges to have their discretion back.”
Bos has been especially critical of Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart, the only active Illinois prosecutor among 102 to support the SAFE-T Act before it became law.
Backed by leftist billionaire George Soros in a national effort to elect “social justice” prosecutors, Rinehart has also refused to cooperate with federal authorities by withholding illegal immigrants accused of crimes.
Despite the backlash, Rinehart remains one of the few Illinois prosecutors actively championing the Safe-T Act.
“Eric Rinehart agrees with all of this,” Bos said. “He supported the Trust Act, not working with ICE, not detaining them and not honoring detainers. All of that happens here in Lake County, and there’s only one reason for that – he doesn’t stand up against it. There’s too much politics involved in the way our laws are being created.”
Bos made a plea to remember her daughter’s humanity beyond addiction and tragedy.
“Regardless of her struggle with addiction, she did not deserve this,” Bos said. “She was a good person with a good heart. She loved the people she cared about and took care of them. She was a very giving person. It’s hard to understand how a friend could do this to her. Because drugs and her addiction are involved, people let that shape their view of the whole situation. It doesn’t change the facts. She was a human being and deserved better.”
The body of Megan Bos, 37, was found in a bleach-filled container in Mendoza-Gonzalez's Waukegan yard. (Photo credit: United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement)
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