Kane County Reporter

Illinois State Representative Dan Ugaste (R-Geneva) and fellow House Republican elected officials recently gathered at the Capitol in Springfield, where they stressed public safety reform across the state as they represented the House Republican Truth in Public Safety Working Group.

According to a release by Rep. Ugaste which included statements and a video of the hearing, the group consists of Rep. Ugaste, House Republican Floor Leader Patrick Windhorst (R-Metropolis), Rep. Dennis Tipsword (R-Metamora), Assistant Leader John Cabello (R-Loves Park), Rep. Amy Grant (R-Wheaton), and Rep. David Friess (R-Red Bud). They were at the press conference to talk about their goals to improve the state’s public safety, speak about protecting crime victims, reform for law enforcement body camera requirements and recruiting and retaining law enforcement officials. Ugaste has been on record saying that for a system to work, there must be cash bail. He adds that it can and needs to be restored in a fair way that pays respect to the rights of those who have been victimized by the growing crime rates.

“The language of the SAFE-T Act ends cash bail statewide. As we’ve seen in the parts of Illinois where this has already been instituted, it is not keeping these communities safe,” said Rep. Ugaste, who is also a member of the Illinois House Police and Fire Committee. “We want to introduce real pre-trial fairness in Illinois by meaningfully addressing reform that considers the rights of the accused, but not at the expense of the remainder of Illinois residents. For any system to work, cash bail must be part of the equation, and we can restore it in a way that’s fair. We cannot continue considering the rights of the accused without concern for the rights of victims and members of our communities.”

The press conference also touched upon reform for law enforcement body camera requirements and retaining and recruiting the best quality law enforcement officers. These are some of the goals of the Truth in Public Safety Working Group who also aims to empower serving officers with tools so they can do their job at an optimal point to keep the community safe; addressing “unending mandates on local governments from Springfield bureaucrats; restoring cash bail in Illinois and also protecting victims of crime.