Chief judge in St. Clair County says Illinois is safer after a year without cash bail

In the year since Illinois got rid of cash bail, St. Clair County’s chief judge saysthe new system is working — and it’s making the Metro East county safer.

“Those who perhaps were dangerous had the ability to bond out — if they had enough money — and many of those people did,” said Judge Andrew Gleeson, chief judge of Illinois’ 20th Circuit based at the Belleville courthouse. “They actually got to be on the streets, making our community less safe.”

The change, which took place Sept. 18, 2023, was a monumental shift in Illinois’ criminal justice system, the judge said.

In the past year, if the state or county want to keep someone in jail, prosecutors have to convince a judge that the accused should remain detained at a pretrial hearing. In turn, public defenders and state’s attorneys have picked up extra workloads, arguing the case about release within the first 48 hours of an arrest.