Gov. Pat Quinn today announced an extensive overhaul of the Illinois Department of Corrections’ Meritorious Good Time program, a statutory release program in existence since 1978 that is undergoing a comprehensive evaluation headed by criminal justice expert Judge David A. Erickson.
The Governor’s overhaul ensures that public safety always comes first and that the meritorious credit program assists in the punishment and rehabilitation of offenders, while saving the State money during an unprecedented economic crisis.
The changes are based on initial recommendations from Judge Erickson, who continues his review of the meritorious credit program.
“My mandate to the Department of Corrections is and always has been: Public safety is the top priority,” said Gov. Quinn.
“An overhaul of the Department of Corrections’ statutory program guarantees my commitment to safety while also making adjustments needed to improve the program’s operations.”
Governor Quinn’s overhaul includes four major areas:
Meritorious Credit Standards. Gov. Quinn previously suspended and is now terminating the Department of Corrections’ recently-accelerated meritorious credit program referred to as “MGT Push,” which did not require inmates to spend at least 61 days in Department of Corrections custody before being credited with any meritorious credit.
While the 61-day custody requirement had been a long-standing practice within the Department of Corrections, it is not a formal law or agency rule and was reduced by the Department of Corrections in September 2009.
In order to ensure that an offender serves at least that amount of time in State custody before being credited with any meritorious credit, the 61-day requirement has been reinstated as a formal agency rule.
Enhancing Communication with Local Authorities. Gov. Quinn is ordering the Department of Corrections to provide local prosecutors with at least 14-days advance notice before releasing an inmate into mandatory supervision under the meritorious credit program or into home custody under the separate Electronic Detention Program.
This advance notice requirement will provide local authorities with sufficient opportunity to appropriately respond to and disseminate notices.
Improve the Law. Gov. Quinn will work with members of the General Assembly to develop initiatives that will prohibit dangerous criminals from being eligible for a meritorious credit program. Presently, Illinois law dictates that those convicted of certain crimes against persons and DUIs must be included in a meritorious credit program, along with those convicted of lesser offenses.
Bolster IDOC Operations. Gov. Quinn will further improve the reporting and communications between his office and the Department of Corrections. The Governor will soon name a Chief Public Safety Officer at IDOC, who will be responsible for overseeing implementation of the meritorious credit and Electronic Detention programs.
In addition, Governor Quinn will name a Public Safety Liaison Officer for the Office of the Governor, who will also assist in the oversight, coordination and implementation of those programs. This position will work within the Office of Governor’s General Counsel.
In addition, Governor Quinn also appointed retired Judge Gino L. DiVito to the Sentencing Policy Advisory Council.
The Council, part of the Crime Reduction Act signed into law in August, will review sentencing policies and practices and examine their impact on the Illinois criminal justice system. The Council is composed of 18 members and is required to submit an annual report to the Governor and the General Assembly.
Judge DiVito has been involved in the Illinois criminal justice system since his graduation from Loyola University of Chicago School of Law in 1963.
He served for eight years on the Illinois Appellate Court First District’s Second Division, has taught at Loyola University of Chicago School of Law for more than three decades and is a founding partner of Tabet DiVito & Rothstein, where he has worked since 2001. (Background Information)
The review headed by Judge Erickson has found that under MGT Push, the recently accelerated meritorious credit program, 1,718 inmates were either released into mandatory supervision, transferred into the custody of another jurisdictional authority, or, in the case of three of the inmates, were not subject to mandatory supervision as a matter of law or by an order of the courts.
On average, these 1,718 inmates served 37 days less than they would have under the prior 61-day meritorious credit program. Even under the 61-day meritorious credit program, 1,392 inmates (81 percent of those 1,718) would have been released by December 30 and all would have been released by the end of January, 2010.
Judge Erickson, a Senior Lecturer in Law at Chicago-Kent College of Law, is a former judge and prosecutor.
An unpaid advisor to the Governor, Erickson is conducting a top-to-bottom review of the meritorious credit program along with Jerome Stermer, Gov. Quinn’s chief of staff, and Theodore Chung, general counsel to Governor Quinn.
“The meritorious credit system was created nearly 32 years ago for a different time and penal system.” said Judge Erickson.
“We’ve made a number of early recommendations to help fix a system that has broken down. More recommendations will be made that will protect the public while preserving the integrity of the criminal justice system and the court’s sentencing of offenders.”
The Illinois Department of Corrections was established in 1970. When IDOC began, Illinois only operated seven adult facilities. Since that time, stricter laws have resulted in increased sentencing and longer terms.
To address this steady increase in the inmate population, the agency today operates 28 adult correctional centers as well as various work camps, boot camps and eight adult transition centers.
IDOC’s recommended budget is $1.28 billion for Fiscal Year 2010. The agency employs approximately 11,000 employees and is responsible for the management of 45,000 adult inmates.
In Illinois the rate of recidivism, a tendency to relapse into criminal behavior, was 51.3 percent in fiscal year 2009 and 47 percent of DOC inmates serve six months or less.
For more information on IDOC, please visit: idoc.state.il.us.
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I was told that the early release program will be back on the 18th of Nov. Gov. Quinn we vote you back in, now can you do your part and give ours love ones back. they are needed at home, they did theirs time for their’s crime that only fair… MS. NOLOVE.
Okay Its November 5Th and I’m waiting for the news regarding MGT. In spite of how we have disagreed with Gov. Quinn suspension of MGT, We still voted for him and he won. We came through for you Gov. Quinn now you come through for us and release our loved ones. I miss my husband and need him and love him and my Lil girls need there Daddy.
Ok guys its election day Nov. 2nd, will our loved ones come home? I really miss my husband.
it is goimg to come back after election in nov 2010 anyione else think so?
I want good time to come back as well, Isnt it suppose to come back after ths election in nov 2010???????????
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okay i really agree with you all excepy ricco because not all inmates are in there for drugs… i really think that good time should be given back because as a tax payer why do we have to hurt because Quinn stupid act? if its 44,000 inmates that means there is 10x that of people family and friends that voted for you, which means you will not get re-elected again. its not our fault nor the inmates fault that you let all them out with out checking first. now familys have to hurt. which means they need to come out and Quinn you need to supply them with jobs, to help there familys out. I will never vote for you in life and nor will my family nor friends you have done the stupid of stupid thing in life bring back the good time if you want our vote…..now the jails are over packed and all the inmates are doing is sleeping, eating, and hanging out let them out to do well for there familys……bring back the good time (MGT/SMGT)
okay i really agree with you all excepy ricco because not all inmates are in there for drugs… i really think that good time should be given back because as a tax payer why do we have to hurt because Quinn stupid act? if its 44,000 inmates that means there is 10x that of people family and friends that voted for you, which means you will not get re-elected again. its not our fault nor the inmates fault that you let all them out with out checking first. now familys have to hurt. which means they need to come out and Quinn you need to supply them with jobs, to help there familys out. I will never vote for you in life and nor will my family nor friends you have done the stupid of stupid thing in life bring back the good time if you want our vote…..now the jails are over packed and all the inmates are doing is sleeping, eating, and hanging out let them out to do well for there familys……
my husband is in prison for driveing a dirtbike that the law says does not have to be liscensed or the driver as long as there on side roads. My son had his grandpas bike he didnt have it home by dark. Like he was supose to so myself and my husband went and picked it up. My husband was on the side road takeing the bike back to the house. And the cops stoped him they where looking for my son. My husband took two years. with it cut in half its now a year. H e was supose to get this MGT GOOD TIME when he got to Pinkneyville Corrections. That would have him geting out July 13 2010. Now they are saying no one is getting this good time. But they are letting sex offenders out and rapest. That repeat there crimes. To myself and our three children this is a bunch of bull. We need him home he is our soul provider. I cant work do to illnesses. All i am trying to say is there is people in prison that has done mager crimes and some that are in there for driveing with out a license. The prisons are over crowded as it is. Just bring the MGT GOOD TIME back so the men and wemon that are entiteld to get it. can come home to there familys. THANKS for hereing me out cindy jeter
Yes that is true on the first time offenders they do get it cut in half but come on as I stated to the judge on the stand it would be to the best intrest of the person to get a real job and be in society instead of being locked up for a period of time that coast us the tax payers money.
This way he/she would be out have a job be doing there duty of being a person in society and not be sitting in prision when others who really need to be there are out on a teconatality…My man just got sentanced to 30 mths which yes gets cut in half hes not a reoffender just got cought up in an emitional rollacoster and made a mistake people make mistakes in life I have and Im not injail or prision for it…give back the good time i really beleive some are not to be in there they deserve another chance at life and to be a son, father, husband…please being back the good time they need it.
this fukn asshole needs to give them back their good time. its unfair for first time offenders. good time has been around for decades and the year my boyfriend goes away is the year they end it. just my luck.
u r sterio-typing ricco
Well Terry, this would be a good idea, but I dont think you understand about the majority of the inmates locked up… First of all they already get one half their time cut. so they do 2 years on a 4 year sentence. That is way way generous. Second of all, most of these inmates have not, and will not work, their job is easy money, selling drugs, stealing you know the gig. The only person that is already getting a break is someone serving only 1/2 their sentence because they cant follow rules or play well with others/……..
I don’t think you understand the majority of the inmates locked up! My son has been sent to prison 3 times for drugs. He doesn’t sell them he is a heroin addict. He needs help. This started when he was 18 so no parental insurance to get good treatment for him. He never has enough time to serve to be placed in Sheridan’s drug program. So, they just throw him in the general population, he attends their generic drug program and gets nothing from it. If an addict checks himself in for help he is sick. If he gets caught with it he is a criminal. Each time he goes back in he loses a little more self esteem and becomes more institutionalized. When will the state realize that they are only costing the taxpayers more by not giving these kids the help they need. Why does a heroin addict have to have a specified amount of time to serve to get in to a good drug program? Please don’t tell me that it’s because of the length of the duration of the good programs. There are many different levels and I am certain a 28 day program at Sheridan would be better than one offered at another facility. At some point I will be making some noise about this issue. I will be going to the state capital. I am tired and I hurt for my son. He is a bright musically gifted young man, and I refuse to let him and others like him be swept under the state’s rug!
You know ricco while I do understand that if you do something wrong you should pay the price BUT when do you finish paying. First we all must ask how are the drugs getting into the United States, and it seems no one gets caught but the young people on the street corners who, most of them haven’t been out of Illinois let alone out of the country. Another thing is if they cut off their ability to get a job because jobs are refusing to hire felonies you tell me what then is left for them to do, no one is gonna starve and they go back to what seems like the only thing they can do to eat, clothe themselves & their families and to have a roof over their head. So maybe we need some laws in place that will catch the real crooks that bring the stuff in and laws or programs that will help them become good citizens.
I agree with a lot of people out there that say give them back their good time ,lets try and save some money for this state somewhere,why not let them out and get a job and tax them and give us a break….put the meritorious good time back into effect,please…
this is some bullshit!!!! Quinn needs to get his shit straight and give the damn inmates their good time! MGT/SMG has been around a hell of a lot longer than he has been governor, so who is he to come in and change it? The state is billions in debt, so hey let’s just keep the inmates an extra 6months so we can just add to our HUGE debt. GOOD THINKING GOVERNOR QUINN!!!!!!!