Loop violence puts renewed scrutiny on Cook County's troubled home monitoring program
Questions over why CTA arson attack suspect was free after previous charges
The recent CTA arson attack has led to renewed criticism over why the suspect was out on home confinement for previous criminal charges and not in jail.
CHICAGO - Cook County’s embattled electronic monitoring program is under renewed scrutiny as it faces mismanagement and a major transition.
What we know:
It's one of the reasons that CTA arson suspect Lawrence Reed was out on electronic monitoring awaiting trial for previous aggravated battery charges.
On Monday, Fox 32 learned that county prosecutors forcefully argued that Reed should be in jail, but a judge ordered him into home confinement on the chief judge's adult probation program. CWB Chicago reported Reed had violated his curfew and wasn't even supposed to be out on the street.
In an internal memo, Cook County State's Attorney Eileen O'Neill Burke called the attack a "punch to the gut," and praised prosecutors who "not only established that the individual was a clear danger to the community but when the judge denied the petition to detain, she took the mandatory objection language and added a line by line summation of why he did present a danger."
Currently, there are two separate home confinement programs. One run by the sheriff's office.
As of November, there are 1,260 offenders under the adult probation, including 208 for aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, two for reckless homicide, and 11 for attempted murder.
Under the chief judge, offenders are free to roam around during the day; they just have a curfew they need to be home by. The sheriff's is more severe where they cannot leave their home, and sheriff's police track them down if they are in violation.
Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart has long complained he can't administer the program anymore because there are too many violent offenders that get put into the program and diverted from jail.
Longtime Chief Judge Timothy Evans recently lost reelection among his peers and will leave the post on Dec. 1. Cook County Judge Charles Beach will take over.
What they're saying:
The Office of the Chief Judge late Tuesday released a lengthy statement detailing the procedures of the electronic monitoring program. While the office could not go into detail about the specific arson attack case, the chief judge's office said:
"We are reviewing all actions taken in this case to ensure procedures were followed and to identify opportunities for improvement. One immediate change under consideration is reinstating the practice of reporting escalated EM alerts to the State’s Attorney’s Office. That process was previously paused, following concerns raised by the State’s Attorney’s Office regarding the volume of alerts. In the interest of public safety, we believe it is necessary to re-evaluate this process.
"We will continue to work closely with our justice-system partners to assess current procedures and determine whether additional safeguards or policy adjustments are warranted. The Office of the Chief Judge remains committed to fairness, accountability and the highest standards of public trust."