KANKAKEE, Ill. (AP) – An Illinois judge plans to rule by the end of this month on a lawsuit challenging the state’s landmark SAFE-T Act criminal justice overhaul that includes eliminating the setting of cash bail for those accused of crimes to be released from jail. A Kankakee County judge heard arguments Tuesday in lawsuits brought by several prosecutors and sheriffs against the measure pushed by Democrats who control the Illinois General Assembly. The elimination of cash bail is set to take effect Jan. 1, which would end a practice that critics say penalizes the poor. A lawyer for opponents argued the law violated a state constitutional provision that says “all persons shall be bailable by sufficient sureties.”
