Full Text of HJR0021 95th General Assembly
HJ0021eng 95TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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| HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION 21
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| WHEREAS, Article I, Section 11 of the Illinois Constitution | 3 |
| states "All penalties shall be determined both according to the | 4 |
| seriousness of the offense AND WITH THE OBJECTIVE OF RESTORING | 5 |
| THE OFFENDER TO USEFUL CITIZENSHIP" (emphasis added); and | 6 |
| WHEREAS, Illinois is one of only 11 states that has life | 7 |
| without parole sentences and one of only 6 states where all | 8 |
| life sentences are without parole; and
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| WHEREAS, Thirty years ago only a handful of prisoners in | 10 |
| Illinois served sentences longer than 30 years; this year | 11 |
| approximately 4,000 Illinois prisoners have sentences of 30 | 12 |
| years or more, including C number prisoners, amounting to about | 13 |
| 10% of all Illinois prisoners; and | 14 |
| WHEREAS, In Illinois at least 500 people each year are | 15 |
| sentenced as lifers or long-term prisoners; and | 16 |
| WHEREAS, With the growth of truth in sentencing laws and | 17 |
| increased use of life without parole sentences, the number of | 18 |
| long-term prisoners will grow exponentially; and
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| WHEREAS, It costs at least one million dollars to confine a | 20 |
| person in prison for 30 years; and
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| WHEREAS, It is estimated that close to half of those lifers | 2 |
| and long-term prisoners will never be released from prison if | 3 |
| current policies stay in place; and
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| WHEREAS, The recidivism rate for long-termers is the lowest | 5 |
| of any group of prisoners; and | 6 |
| WHEREAS, A large number of lifers and long-term prisoners | 7 |
| are sentenced under the accountability theory and not for the | 8 |
| actual commission of the crime, and some are first time | 9 |
| offenders; and | 10 |
| WHEREAS, Community crime prevention programs, not harsher | 11 |
| prison sentences are responsible for the decline in crime | 12 |
| rates; and | 13 |
| WHEREAS, Numerous innocent people have been wrongly | 14 |
| convicted in Illinois; and | 15 |
| WHEREAS, Many countries no longer impose sentences of life | 16 |
| without parole; therefore, be it
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| RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE | 18 |
| NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, THE | 19 |
| SENATE CONCURRING HEREIN, that there is created the Long-Term |
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| Prisoners Study Committee, hereinafter referred to as the | 2 |
| Committee, consisting of 17 members appointed as follows:
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| (1) Three members appointed by the President of the Senate;
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| (2) Two members appointed by the Minority Leader of the | 5 |
| Senate;
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| (3) Three members appointed by the Speaker of the House of
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| Representatives;
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| (4) Two members appointed by the Minority Leader of the | 9 |
| House of
Representatives;
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| (5) One member appointed by the Attorney General;
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| (6) One member appointed by the Governor;
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| (7) One member appointed by the Cook County State's | 13 |
| Attorney;
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| (8) One member appointed by the Office of the Cook County | 15 |
| Public
Defender;
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| (9) One member appointed by the Office of the State | 17 |
| Appellate
Defender;
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| (10) One member appointed by the Office of the State's | 19 |
| Attorneys Appellate
Prosecutor; and | 20 |
| (11) One member appointed by the Director of Corrections; | 21 |
| and be it further | 22 |
| RESOLVED, That the Department of Corrections shall provide | 23 |
| staff and administrative support to the Committee; and be it | 24 |
| further
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| RESOLVED, That the Committee shall study and examine issues | 2 |
| related to prisoners sentenced to life without parole and | 3 |
| prisoners sentenced to terms in excess of 30 years; and be it | 4 |
| further | 5 |
| RESOLVED, That the Committee in its deliberations shall | 6 |
| always give priority to public safety and the best use of State | 7 |
| funds; and be it further | 8 |
| RESOLVED, That the Committee shall hold public hearings and | 9 |
| present a report of its findings and recommendations to the | 10 |
| 95th General Assembly before December 31, 2007.
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