State representative candidate Liz Bishop pledges to seek repeal of SAFE-T Act

A La Salle Republican running for Illinois state representative pledged Tuesday to try and overturn the SAFE-T Act and denounced three measures that would, if enacted, cut down on the time inmates would serve in the Illinois Department of Corrections.

I will never vote for any new, anti-law enforcement legislation introduced by radical, progressive legislators.”

—  Liz Bishop, Republican candidate for Illinois state representative

Liz Bishop, the GOP nominee for the Illinois House district that includes La Salle, Bureau and DeKalb counties, appeared Tuesday to voice her opposition to three house bills at the Auditorium Ballroom in La Salle.

“I will advocate and vote for scaling back or repealing the SAFE-T Act, which is catch-and-release at its worst,” Bishop said. “It has also partially defunded police departments and sheriff’s offices by creating excessive reporting requirements with no funding to pay for it. ... I will never vote for any new, anti-law enforcement legislation introduced by radical, progressive legislators.”

Freshman state Rep. Dennis Tipsword, R-Pontiac, accompanied Bishop and spelled out three such proposals he said need to be thwarted:

• House Bill 2045 would, if enacted, allow a prisoner serving a life sentence to be eligible for parole “under specified provisions.” Additionally, any inmate aged 55 or older who has served at least 25 consecutive years of incarceration would be eligible for parole. That, Tipsword said, would extend to a killer who, in a previous era, would have been eligible for the death penalty
• House Bill 5037 would eliminate some sentencing mandates for crimes committed with a firearm. Firearm enhancements, which typically add 15 years to 25 years atop a prison term, would be discretionary instead of mandatory. Judges would no longer be able to impose a life term.
• House Bill 5219 would, as worded, eliminate provisions that a person must serve various percentages for particular offenses. If enacted, the measure would effectively abolish the Truth in Sentencing Act, which requires certain felons to serve 85% of their sentences and 75% of Class X drug offenses.

Tipsword, whose nine-county district includes Putnam County and parts of La Salle and Bureau counties, termed the latter bill “the worst of the bunch.”

He said the measure would apply retroactively and free a broad number of inmates, including murderers, who suddenly become day-for-day eligible. Tipsword is challenged by Democratic candidate Morgan Phillips of Lostant in the November race.

Tipsword said the SAFE-T Act yielded “predictable” and “avoidable” results, including no-shows. He cited a recent study showing three in four defendants in Cook County skip their court dates knowing there will be few if any consequences.

“I, and many of my colleagues in law enforcement, were trying to sound the alarm because we knew what would happen,” he said.

Will any of the three proposals be enacted? Only HB 2045 (making life sentences parole-eligible) has made any advance through the Illinois House of Representatives, having passed a March committee vote. The other two bills are languishing in the House Rules Committee, with no activity since April.

Tuesday’s news conference was a campaign stop aimed to distance Bishop from her opponent, Democratic nominee Amy “Murri” Briel, on criminal justice.

Former La Salle County Sheriff Tom Templeton, a Republican running for a seat on the La Salle County Board, culled a series of published and spoken quotes attributed to Briel.

He said the quotes include 2021 statements in which Briel said, “We don’t even need police anymore because we can police each other,” and, “I’m honestly thinking that it may not be a bad idea to just remove sheriff’s departments.”

Templeton spotlighted one comment in which Briel likened the modern policing system to “slave patrols.”

Templeton said the statement shows “a complete and utter disregard” for the officers who risk their lives to protect and to serve.

“That is a direct insult,” Templeton said, calling on Briel to recant her statement and apologize. “It’s a slap in the face.”

State representative candidate Briel responds

When reached for comment Tuesday, Briel said her past comments were taken out of context selectively and ignore the work she did for regional law enforcement agencies as chief of staff for outgoing state Rep. Lance Yednock, D-Ottawa.

“My opponent and the political insiders backing her are again trying to feed voters a false narrative about who I am, because they cannot run on their own platform of stripping away women’s rights, cutting wages for workers, and making our healthcare unaffordable,” Briel said in a statement. “I truly believe that those insiders will find after the election, they vastly underestimate the intelligence, independence and pragmatism that is the spirit of this district.

“It’s really disappointing how dialogue and trying to understand perspectives other than your own are reduced into cheap ‘gotcha’ moments in politics today. My opponent and I recently had a chance to speak side by side, in an unedited video forum for Shaw Media. I encourage any undecided voter to watch the 40 minutes and decide for themselves who is the most vested, authentic, pragmatic candidate in the race.”