Governor J.B Pritzker today signed a comprehensive public safety reform package – spearheaded by the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus – that prioritize rehabilitation and supports communities most impacted by crime but least served by the current criminal justice system. The legislation’s reforms include improvements to the state’s sentence credit program to reduce recidivism and over-incarceration, as well as a lowering of barriers for crime survivors to access victim services – changes championed by the Alliance for Safety and Justice, with widespread support among crime survivors throughout Illinois.

The Alliance for Safety and Justice (ASJ) today announced that co-founder Robert Rooks will transition on March 1 from his role as Chief Executive Officer to become President Emeritus of the organization’s Board of Directors. Rooks will remain active with ASJ, as he assumes a new role as Chief Executive Officer of REFORM Alliance, an allied criminal justice reform organization founded in 2019.

The Alliance for Safety and Justice highlighted a fiscal impact statement from the Ohio Legislative Service Commission, indicating Senate Bill 3 would have positive results for taxpayers and the state’s severely overcrowded prison system. The nonpartisan agency’s analysis estimated that the legislation will produce up to $75 million in cost savings and 2,700 fewer people sentenced to prison each year for a low-level drug possession offense.