IL Senate GOP want penalty enhancements, reform within Prisoner Review Board

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) — Illinois Senate Republicans are renewing their calls for reform within the state's Prisoner Review Board.

This comes less than a week after two board members resigned over public backlash for granting parole to a man who stabbed his ex-girlfriend's 11-year-old son to death less than 24 hours after he was released from prison.

Jayden Perkins was trying to defend his pregnant mother, who had an order of protection against Corsetti Brand.

Sen. Steve McClure (R-Springfield) told reporters Tuesday that the General Assembly should increase the criminal penalty for violating an order of protection.

"A first time violation would increase from a misdemeanor to a Class 4 felony," McClure said. "And if someone violates again, that conviction would increase it from a Class 4 felony to a Class 3 felony. A Class 3 felony is a much more serious felony than a Class 4 felony and would demonstrate the seriousness of the offense."

The Senate GOP have also filed a bill to require the Prisoner Review Board to make every effort possible to immediately notify a victim when someone will be released from prison.

Senate GOP Leader John Curran (R-Downers Grove) noted that Brand sent his ex-girlfriend multiple messages threatening to kill her and tried to break into her home while he was on parole in February. That violation sent him back into the state's custody until the Prisoner Review Board could reconsider his case.

"Whether it's early release, a commutation, or, like in this situation, the outcome of a revocation hearing after an offender has violated his conditions of their parole, it is critical a victim knows that someone who could be a danger to them is out of prison," Curran stressed.

Republicans have also filed a plan to require Prisoner Review Board members to complete annual training on domestic violence and sexual assault to better understand how those crimes impact the women and children who become victims.

Pritzker told reporters at an unrelated event Monday that changes are necessary since PRB members failed to take the domestic violence history of Brand into consideration before granting his parole.

"One thing that we've decided to do is to make sure that we enhance the domestic violence training that all PRB members get, including all the ones that are there now and, of course, any new ones that are proposed to make sure this never happens again," Pritzker said.

Sen. Jason Plummer (R-Edwardsville) is also calling for lawmakers to require PRB appointees to have at least 20 years of cumulative experience in the criminal justice system before they could serve on the board.

"The governor knew his appointees, including a convicted double-murderer, would not be able to withstand public scrutiny," Plummer said. "His appointees have largely been unqualified and letting violent criminals out at a much higher rate than previous administrations."

Although, Pritzker told reporters in Chicago that people frequently politicize PRB positions. The governor said that is why it is less likely someone would want to serve on the board.

"There have been people in the General Assembly, typically the opposite party, who have politicized this," Pritzker said. "So, it makes it more difficult. Obviously, we're contemplating that we need to make nominations to those positions, but we don't have any decisions yet."

Curran told WAND News that Pritzker's comments were ridiculous. He stressed that the Prisoner Review Board and Department of Corrections were complicit in the death of a child.

"It's nonsense," Curran stressed. "The governor needs to lead. We've had enough of his failures to lead the agencies under his control. We want to move past that."