Inmates warn people are being wrongfully detained despite no-cash bail under SAFE-T Act

As a longtime advocate for criminal justice reform and chairman of the West Side Heroin/Opioid Task Force, I have dedicated years to promoting policies that treat addiction as a public health issue while enhancing public safety. That is why I was concerned during a recent visit to the Cook County Jail, where I met with more than 100 detainees to hear firsthand about their experiences under Illinois’ no-cash bail system.

Many expressed concerns that prosecutors are seeking detention in cases that do not seem to involve violent offenses or clear public safety risks, raising serious questions about whether the law is being implemented as intended.

Illinois adopted a no-bail system to end the injustice of keeping people in jail just because they cannot afford to pay for their release. The goal was never to detain more people; it was to detain the right people: those who genuinely threaten public safety. When implementation appears inconsistent or overly harsh, it undermines trust in the reform and increases public mistrust.

We also must recognize that individuals struggling with substance use disorder should not be confined in jail cells. Addiction is a public health issue, not a moral failing. People battling substance use disorder should be directed to treatment, recovery services and mental health support, not incarceration. When people are jailed instead of receiving help, they lose jobs, fall behind on rent and child support and sink further into a system that destabilizes families and harms businesses dependent on a stable workforce.

Taxpayers deserve better. They deserve a justice system that is fair, consistent and uses public resources efficiently. Detaining individuals unnecessarily costs millions of dollars, strains county budgets and does nothing to improve community safety. Fairness is both a moral obligation and a fiscal responsibility.

For these reasons, I am urging the Cook County state’s attorney’s office to ensure transparency and accountability regarding detention practices, including data on who prosecutors seek to detain and why. Prosecutorial discretion must never happen without public oversight.

Given the serious concerns raised by the detainees, I also urge the Illinois attorney general to review and investigate detention decisions in Cook County to ensure they comply with the law and are enforced fairly and without bias.

Reform must be effective in practice, not just in theory. Victims deserve protection, communities deserve trust, defendants deserve fairness, families deserve stability and taxpayers deserve a justice system that maintains integrity.

State Rep. La Shawn K. Ford, D-Chicago, chairman, West Side Heroin/Opioid Task Force, and Democratic nominee, Illinois’ 7th Congressional District

Good luck, Maddie Lee, but not to the Dodgers

I am writing to express gratitude to longtime Cubs beat writer Maddie Lee, who I was sad to hear is moving to the Los Angeles Times to cover the Dodgers.

Ms. Lee’s writing about the Cubs was nothing less than outstanding. She has a deep understanding of contemporary analytics and statistics, a grasp of the emotional connections Cubs fans feel toward the team, as well as the franchise’s complicated history. She also had a graceful and engaging prose style; her stories were always a pleasure to read, even if they dealt with Cubs losses far too often.

No knock on whoever takes over the Cubs beat for the Sun-Times, but Ms. Lee will be missed. I just hope she will be OK when the Cubs beat the Dodgers in the National League Championship Series this October.

Bill Savage, Rogers Park

People are the same everywhere

President Donald Trump has been making cruel, divisive ethnic comments for years, but recently he has targeted a tiny minority of American immigrants from Somalia. It’s unlikely he has ever personally known a Somali, and he admits he’s never visited the country. But that doesn’t stop him from labeling Somalia a garbage country and its people not worthy of being accepted into the fabric of America.

In 1967 I began Peace Corps service in Somalia as a middle school teacher, and it was as different from life in the Chicago suburb where I grew up as you could imagine. And while there were many things that were hard to adjust to, the kids that I taught were not among them. They were 11 and 12 years old, and I found them easy to get to know and love. It turned out that they delighted in a good prank and were quick to laugh. But they were also sensitive and feelings were easily hurt. Some were impressively smart, some struggled, and all wanted to do well.

Upon returning home in 1969 I taught sixth grade at a modern school in Northbrook with air conditioning, carpeted classrooms and all the teaching aids I could ask for. It could not have been more different from my school in Somalia, except that the kids were exactly the same. Their insecurities were identical.

They all wanted to be accepted by their peers, and they all wanted to be seen as successful. The things that made them laugh or cry were no different from my Somali students.

In 1979 I started an air freight company in Chicago that 33 years later grew into a global company with thousands of employees across the United States and dozens of other countries around the world. Our employees dressed differently, had their own music, language and religion, but they all had important things in common. They appreciated being respected, thanked and working in an organization that was honest and supportive. Our company culture bridged all their local cultures, and that culture was our most valuable asset. What I learned in Somalia is that people are the same everywhere in the ways that truly matter. Every leader should understand that, especially the U.S. president.

Bill McInerney, retired founder/CEO, Phoenix International Freight Services Ltd., Park Ridge

Chicago’s antisemitism report demands action

The Chicago Commission on Human Relations’ recent report on rising antisemitism, covered in the Sun-Times, should be a wake-up call for the city. Will it stand against antisemitism or stand back and do nothing?

The commission has done what history demands and issued a report on rising antisemitism in Chicago. Under the leadership of Chair Nancy Andrade, the commission undertook the difficult but necessary work of gathering testimony and confronting uncomfortable truths. This report is not just a collection of data points. It reflects the experiences of Jewish Chicagoans who have seen old hatreds resurface in new forms.

Days ago, a group of Jewish students attending a campus meetup at a cafe near DePaul University were harassed and intimidated simply for being Jewish. This was not an isolated misunderstanding. It reflects a broader and troubling pattern. Antisemitism is no longer confined to rhetoric online. It is surfacing in classrooms, public spaces and neighborhoods across Chicago.

Now it’s up to Mayor Brandon Johnson. Will he stand with those who spoke up, or allow their warnings to be lost in the noise of city politics?

This should not be a partisan question. It is about whether city leaders will act when residents raise serious concerns about hate.

The commission’s recommendations are not radical. They are the basic tools every city should use to protect its residents: clear ways to report hate, stronger coordination and a commitment to confront antisemitism wherever it appears.

The City Council has already taken an important step by unanimously adopting and codifying the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s working definition of antisemitism into law. The commission’s report builds on that foundation by translating principles into policy.

Turning away from these findings would deepen the sense of abandonment many already feel.

At the Simon Wiesenthal Center, where I serve as director of social action and partnerships for the Midwest and South, we work to confront antisemitism and hate through education, accountability, and civic engagement.

Chicago prides itself on being a city of inclusion. Supporting the commission’s recommendations is a chance to prove it.

The commission has done its work. Now Chicago’s leadership must do theirs.

Alison Pure-Slovin, Midwest director of social action and partnerships, Simon Wiesenthal Center

PAC attack

Thank you for your reporting on the various PACs that tried to influence Tuesday's primary elections. One might think that the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision has made us helpless against this onslaught of dark money, but it did not. Every state has the right to decide what powers it grants to corporations doing business in that state — and which powers it does not. The Transparent Election Initiative, which began in Montana but is spreading to other states, including Illinois, aims to deny corporations the power to meddle in politics. This can be done through legislation or by changing the state constitution.

State Rep. Sharon Chung, D-Bloomington, has introduced House Bill 4435, which would clarify that corporations do not have the power "to engage in activities related to the nomination or election of candidates for public office or the initiation, submission, or consideration of questions of public policy."

We should all urge our state representative to support this bill.

Tom McDougal, South Kenwood

When youngsters are old enough to vote

What a great idea to have students run an early voting program in Cook County. Allowing students to vote, however, is another matter. Science has shown, the prefrontal cortex of the human brain, which, among other functions, controls decision-making, does not mature until age 24 or 25. That fact, along with the limited amount of education high-school students receive in civics and history classes — sometimes from teachers who don't conceal their political preferences — dictates that young adult students should not be entrusted with the important task of voting on issues that will affect thousands of people. Karma, however, just might come back at them when those students become older adults and have to live with the consequences of decisions made by their 18-year-old immature and inexperienced selves.

Sherry Szilage Stoffel, North Aurora

Back to regular programming

I’m so grateful the primary election is over because I was so tired of seeing the same commercials over and over on who praised U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, who wants to abolish ICE and who got money from an ICE contractor. I now look forward to all the personal injury attorney commercials where I just have to dial one number to contact them.

Richard Barber, Mount Greenwood

With Iran war, MAGA could go bust

Most of the entire world seems to be opposed to the war in Iran. Other than Israel, which is attacking Iran with the U.S., very few countries are willing to step up to help. American support dwindles with every gasoline price hike. By the time the midterms roll around, our economy will be in tatters. I suppose the bright side is that Trump's MAGA will be "completely obliterated".

Tony Galati, Lemont 

Trump should help with gas money

With oil around $100 to $115 a barrel, U.S. oil producers are charging higher prices for gasoline at the pump. The cost to extract oil with the U.S. has not increased. The producers are reaping a windfall gain due to rising global prices due to Donald's Trump's war.

If Trump cared about working families, he could tax the windfall gain and send us all a check to help pay for our gas fill-ups.

Don Wedd, Hyde Park

Going to bat for Venezuela?

Now that President Donald Trump has become Venezuela's self-appointed leader, do we congratulate him on Venezuela winning the World Baseball Classic by defeating the United States 3-2?

John Farrell, DeKalb