Critics of the police reform bill the legislature sent to Gov. Pritzker say police won’t be allowed to do anything in some situations. WCMY News asked St. Rep. Lance Yednock if it’s true that police won’t be allowed to arrest trespassers. He says that’s one of many things he’s still trying to understand about the bill he voted against.
Yednock says there’s a lot he’s learning about the 764-page bill that he voted against after getting it just hours before the General Assembly’s session ended. He’s talking to the bill’s writers and asking judges and police officers what they think about various parts.
The Ottawa Democrat says it doesn’t sound right that a police officer wouldn’t be able to check over video of incidents when he writes reports. But he says it’s not about defunding police departments and it contains some things the police say should happen.
On prohibiting officers from referring to videos, Yednock says he was told it was meant to make the police officer accused of wrongdoing go through a process comparable to what an ordinary defendant must to get police video, perhaps by going to court. Yednock wants to know if the requirement can be tweaked so a supervisor is present.
The bill is mainly aimed at making police work more fair to minorities. One thing it doesn’t touch is civil forfeiture, a practice many civil rights advocates say is unfair and often directed at minorities. In a civil forfeiture case, police seize cash, a car, or other property, alleging that it’s probably being used in the trade of illegal drugs. The practice’s critics point to cases where no drugs were found, no charges were filed, and the property taken didn’t belong to the person who was investigated.
Yednock talked about the bill during an online meeting with LaSalle County Democratic Party Chair Dani Brzozowski tonight. Brzozowski says there’ll be another online meeting on March 3. The subject will be redistricting.