Prisoner Review Board reform bill clears Senate
[April 12, 2025]
By Jade Aubrey and UIS Public Affairs Reporting (PAR)
SPRINGFIELD — A bill that would reform the Prisoner Review Board passed
the Illinois Senate on Thursday, aiming to protect victims and increase
transparency about prisoner releases following years of controversy
surrounding the board’s decisions.
Championed by Senate President Don Harmon, D-Oak Park, Senate Bill 19
would give victims the ability to file victim impact statements ahead of
hearings, provide them with additional notice when their offender is
granted early release, and allow them to seek an order of protection
against an offender who is incarcerated.
The bill passed on a 33-22 vote, with some Democrat senators opposing
the legislation.
It would also create the Office of the Director of Victim and Witness
Services, which would ensure the board complies with victims’ rights,
and mandates victims are provided with contact information for the State
Victim Assistance Hotline
The reforms come after Crosetti Brand murdered an 11-year-old Chicago
boy in 2024. That February, the board voted to release Brand, finding
there was not enough evidence he had violated his conditions of release.
His ex-girlfriend, Laterria Smith, was denied an emergency order of
protection by a Cook County judge while Brand was imprisoned at
Stateville in Crest Hill.
A day after he was released, Brand attacked Smith and murdered her
11-year-old son, Jayden Perkins, who attempted to protect his mother.
The murder caused two PRB members, including the board chair, to resign.
Brand’s history of domestic violence against women prompted both
advocates and lawmakers to call for stricter review of prisoners’
backgrounds before their release.
During last year’s legislative session, Rep. Kelly Cassidy, D-Chicago,
championed a PRB reform bill that that had bipartisan support, but was
never called for a vote in the House on the final day of session.
That bill would have made changes that included requiring the board to
notify victims within 24 hours if an offender, whom they had an order of
protection against, was released early.
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Senate President Don Harmon, D-Oak Park, right, speaks with a Senate
staffer a few hours before debating a bill to reform the Prisoner
Review Board. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)
In a news conference held the day after the session ended, Gov. JB
Pritzker expressed his concerns with parts of the bill regarding the
live stream of certain PRB meetings and the lack of funding for other
requirements.
Harmon described this year’s reform bill as a “similar to, but improved
upon” version of Cassidy’s bill that “expands the rights of victims to
be heard and to be notified.”
The bill would change qualifications for board members, requiring seven
out of the 15 board members to have at least five years of experience as
a law enforcement officer, parole officer, prosecutor, criminal defense
attorney or judge.
It would also change the term limits of any new board members elected
from six to eight years, something Harmon said would allow board members
to be less concerned about their reappointment and more focused on
making “good decisions.”
Sen. Steve McClure, R-Springfield, voiced his disagreement on the Senate
floor Thursday. He asked Harmon how he thought it was a “great idea” to
lengthen terms for members, who he said are vetted by the governor.
“The Senate can’t pass a law by itself. The bill before us, I believe,
will be well-received and passed by the House and signed by the
governor,” Harmon said in response. “It is the best bill we are able to
pass into law at the present time.”
Republicans have spent years criticizing Pritzker’s appointments to the
board following several controversial nominations in recent years.
The bill now awaits action in the House.
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