Category Archives: Justice

The Assault on the Pretrial Fairness Act

Posted on November 2022 by Carol Skalnik Leff

Last month, News-Gazette columnist Jim Dey headlined “hysteria” over the provisions of the 2021 Illinois Pretrial Fairness Act (PFA), which will go into effect in January, including the end to cash bail. Predictably, but illogically, Dey located the hysteria on the side … Continue reading →

673 total views

Posted in IL, incarceration, Justice, Politics | Tagged bail reform, Illinois justice, incarceration | Comments Off

Donald Trump v. Shamar Betts

Posted on September 2022 by Shamar Betts

I, Shamar Betts, incited a riot through a Facebook post encouraging my people to join alongside the rest of the world in an attempt to express our feelings on the tragic death of George Floyd in May of 2020. Although … Continue reading →

315 total views, 1 views today

Posted in African American, African Americans, BLM, Court System, incarceration, January 6 insurrection, Justice, Prisoners, Racism, Trump, Voices of Color, Youth | Tagged African American, BLM, incarceration, Justice, Trump | Comments Off

Shamar Betts Case Moves to Federal Appeals Court

Posted on May 2022 by Janice Jayes

On April 8, the case of Urbana resident Shamar Betts moved to the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. Betts was arrested in June, 2020 in the midst of a national crackdown on protests against the murder … Continue reading →

734 total views, 1 views today

Posted in African Americans, BLM, incarceration, Justice, Racism | Comments Off

“It’s a Money Grab”: Billions in COVID Relief Going to Fund Police and Prisons

Posted on May 2022 by Brian Dolinar

If you’re from inner-city Birmingham, Alabama, there’s a “99-percent chance” you have a family member or friend who has been incarcerated, according to Veronica Johnson, deputy director for the Alabama Justice Initiative, which has been fighting against a proposal to … Continue reading →

326 total views, 1 views today

Posted in African Americans, COVID-19, incarceration, Justice, Police, police accountability, Policing | Comments Off

Fines, Fees, and Escalating Bail Bonds: Champaign County Urgently Needs to Implement the Pretrial Fairness Act

Posted on March 2022 by Chelsea Birchmier and Phillip Ernstmeyer

The Champaign County Bailout Coalition (CCBC) is a grassroots organization that uses community donations to pay low bail amounts for incarcerated individuals who don’t have access to financial resources in their moment of crisis. Founded in 2018, CCBC now pays … Continue reading →

643 total views, 1 views today

Posted in Champaign County, Court System, incarceration, Justice, Poverty | Tagged bail bond reform, Champaign County justice system, incareration | Comments Off

Local Community Protests Former Champaign Police Chief’s Teaching Appointment at Parkland College

Posted on March 2022 by Public i

Former Champaign Police Chief Robert T. Finney was hired in August, 2020 to teach Community Policing as well as Introduction to Criminal Justice at Parkland College. “Unbelievable” is what one African American community member thought on hearing the news; “Shocking,” … Continue reading →

875 total views

Posted in African Americans, Education, Justice, police accountability, Police brutality, Policing, Section | Tagged education, Parkland College, police brutality | Comments Off

Taking the Band-Aid Off of Mass Incarceration

Posted on February 2022 by Brian Dolinar

On a bad day, those of us seeking justice can find little to be hopeful about. The recent acquittal of Kyle Rittenhouse again reminds us that the law is designed to protect white lives. Even after widespread protests and demonstrations … Continue reading →

617 total views

Posted in African American, BLM, Champaign County, incarceration, Justice, Police brutality, Policing, Section, State Government | Comments Off

Urbana’s Long Search for Traffic-Stop Equity

Posted on February 2022 by Durl Kruse

In 2004 the State of Illinois required all law enforcement agencies to report their annual traffic stop data to the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT). The Urbana Police Department’s (UPD) data shows they have enforced traffic laws inequitably every year … Continue reading →

478 total views, 3 views today

Posted in African Americans, Champaign County, Justice, Police, Policing, Racism | Comments Off

What’s Understood Need Not Be Explained

Posted on February 2022 by Crushion Stubbs

I’m curious to know, as a reading eye and listening ear, what are you expecting to hear from me? That the feds were somehow wrong, and Shamar was right? Or that he was justified in putting out some call to … Continue reading →

493 total views

Posted in African American, African Americans, Arts, BLM, Justice, Local Arts, Police brutality, Racism, Section, Voices | Comments Off

Ubuntu Project Statement on Automated License Plate Readers

Posted on November 2021 by Ubuntu Project

The Ubuntu Project Urbana-Champaign is disappointed to learn that the Champaign City Council is considering voting to purchase license plate readers. Considering the well-documented controversial reputation and questionable value of license plate readers, the Champaign people need more information on … Continue reading →

506 total views

Posted in African American, African Americans, civil rights, Crime, Gun violence, Justice, police accountability, Policing, Violence | Comments Off

Debt Peonage in the 21st Century: The Shamar Betts Case Continues

Posted on September 2021 by Janice Jayes

On August 19, Shamar Betts was sentenced to 48 months in federal prison (minus 12 for time served) for authoring a Facebook post. The sentencing also made Betts personally responsible for repaying $1.5 million for damage committed by others at … Continue reading →

1,069 total views, 1 views today

Posted in African American, Justice, Police | Comments Off

The Ubuntu Project and the Need for a Progressive Shift in Policing

Posted on September 2021 by Alex Horton

Ubuntu is a term that originated with the Zulu people and roughly translates to “humanity” in English. The term emerged as a political concept following apartheid’s disintegration in South Africa. Now a collective of local community members, scholars, clergy, and … Continue reading →

1,070 total views, 1 views today

Posted in African Americans, Community, Justice, police accountability, Police Brutality, Policing, Voices of Color | Comments Off

Police Brutality is Not Uniquely American: Try France

Posted on September 2021 by Richard Esbenshade and Belden Fields

While we are rightly preoccupied with abuse by the police in the United States, almost no Americans know anything about policing and justice in other countries. France offers a particularly interesting case. In January, six nongovernmental organizations, including Amnesty International … Continue reading →

664 total views

Posted in 1968 Revolt, France, International, Justice, Police, Police Brutality, Police brutality, Policing, Racism, Students | Comments Off

Scapegoating and the 2020 Marketplace Mall Riots

Posted on August 2021 by Janice Jayes

I watched the legal machinery eat further into the life of a young man this past month. On June 14, I joined others at the sentencing hearing for Shamar Betts at the federal courthouse in Urbana. Betts is accused of … Continue reading →

2,155 total views, 2 views today

Posted in African Americans, Justice, Police | Comments Off

The 2021 Illinois Police and Criminal Justice Reform Bill

Posted on April 2021 by Belden Fields

On February 22, Governor Pritzker signed House Bill 3653. This bill, rather a composite omnibus of many bills, was sponsored by the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus in both the Illinois House and Senate. Several of the individual bills were sponsored … Continue reading →

Posted in Court System, IL, Justice, Police, Police Brutality, Policing | Comments Off

Bail Systems as Wealth-Based Incarceration, or “No Money, No Justice”

Posted on April 2021 by Carol Skalnik Leff

The Eighth Amendment to the US Constitution prohibits “excessive” bail, a prohibition that dates back to English common law, and is largely honored in the breach. In Champaign County Jail, on any given day this past winter, there were … Continue reading →

Posted in Court System, IL, incarceration, Justice, National, Women | Comments Off

Shamar Betts: Caught in a Legal Drama that Started Before He was Born

Posted on April 2021 by Janice Jayes

No one wants to be the poster child for a Supreme Court challenge. However, finding his case before the Supreme Court could not only help Urbana resident Shamar Betts resolve his own situation, but it could redraw the legal lines … Continue reading →

Posted in African American, BLM, Champaign County, civil rights, Court System, Justice, News, Racism, Women | Comments Off

Urbana Police Chief Finally Admits Misconduct in Aleyah Lewis Arrest

Posted on December 2020 by Christopher Hansen

It has been more than seven months since the violent arrest of Urbana resident Aleyah Lewis. Tens of thousands of people have watched the videos of Urbana Police Officers throwing Lewis to the ground, pinning her, punching her in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Justice, Police, police accountability, Police brutality, Policing | Comments Off

Governor Pritzker has the Power to Halt All Utility Shutoffs by Signing an Executive Order

Posted on October 2020 by Allan Axelrod

Robin Brown’s utilities in Champaign were shut off by Ameren Illinois on September 18, 2020, in the midst of our historical COVID-19 pandemic. When asked about how utility shutoffs affected her, Brown said “I’ve had to give away and separate … Continue reading →

Posted in Corporations, COVID pandemic, Economy, IL, Justice, Labor/Economics, State Government | Comments Off

Pro-Business Bias and Conservative Extremism at the Supreme Court

Posted on June 2020 by Patricia Simpson

As recent books and law review articles have confirmed, the Supreme Court has been moving to the right since the Nixon Administration. Abetted by Republican politicians, anti-abortion advocates and organizations, and conservative legal entities like the Federalist Society, this rightward … Continue reading →

984 total views, 1 views today

Posted in Justice, Politics, Supreme Court | Comments Off