(Above) Danville Police Chief Christopher Yates addresses Danville City Council Public Services Committee.
It was Tuesday, September 27th, that Vermilion County State’s Attorney Jacqueline Lacy made her appeal to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals concerning the SAFE-T Act, which is scheduled to become Illinois State Law on January 1, 2023.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE: https://vermilioncountyfirst.com/2022/09/27/vermilion-county-states-attorney-takes-action-against-safe-t-act/
Later, Danville Police Chief Christopher Yates found himself talking about the SAFE-T Act at that evening’s City Council Public Services Committee meeting. He told Neuhoff Media afterwards that the Danville Police Department and the State’s Attorney’s Office definitely share a common cause on this issue: crime victims.
Audio PlayerAUDIO: In past conversations our biggest concern, both in law enforcement and the prosecution’s office, is how are we going to protect our citizens? We’re looking at it from a victim’s perspective. How is this in violation to the victim’s rights? And different concerns on how can we protect our people. That’s what we swore to do.
Chief Yates explained during the meeting the difficulties of law enforcement needing to plead their case each and every time they want to keep a dangerous person off the streets, and how it could cause petty criminals to simply not be arrested due to the backlog of cases. Chief Yates says there are challenges to this, and at this point, no one has any definite answers.
Meanwhile, the State’s Attorney is asking for the Circuit Court to declare the SAFE-T Act null and void, in addition to requesting a preliminary injunction on the portion of the act that eliminates cash bail.
