Will Dems Amend SAFE-T Act in 2026?
Police cars respond to a shooting following Chicago’s Christmas Tree lighting last month. (Photo: Chicago Tribune)
After a pair of high profile crimes in Chicago, including a man out on electronic monitoring allegedly setting a woman on fire on board a CTA train and a mass shooting after the city’s Christmas tree lighting ceremony, new spotlight has been shined on the state’s Pretrial Fairness Act and SAFE-T Act.
The laws, which removed cash bail and reformed the justice system and went into effect a little more than two years ago, has been a frequent target for critics, and Republican opponents, who say the legislation is too “pro-criminal” and makes the state less safe.
But supporters of the law say the violent arson case on the CTA train doesn’t impact failures in the law, as a judge decided to put the suspect, Lawrence Reed, who had been arrested more than 70 times, on electronic monitoring over the objection of prosecutors.
Republicans appear to be poised to make crime a centerpiece of their 2026 campaign messaging, which has prompted some discussion among Democrats to strengthen the law during the spring legislative session.
Even Governor JB Pritzker, who has vehemently defended the law since its initial passage in 2021, appeared open to “tweaks” in the wake of the violent train attack.
“Sometimes bills get passed, and everybody that votes for it knows that there needs to be a trailer bill or a tweak that needs to be made afterward,” Pritzker said at an unrelated event last month. “So, I think everybody is open to listening to what changes might need to be made.”
“There is definitely need for cleanup, but all of our efforts have fallen flat in the past,” said one moderate Democratic lawmaker Monday, on the condition of anonymity. “I think we’ll get a better sense of the direction of the session and caucus next month.”
But other Democrats are skeptical supporters will be open to serious changes.
“The authors of the legislation are very protective of it,” another Democratic lawmaker said. “I would find it hard to believe that [they] are going to concede changes for what is, essentially, an isolated case. If there were more widespread problems being reported, then, maybe. But it doesn’t feel to me like we’re there yet.”
We reached out to both House Speaker Chris Welch and Senate President Don Harmon to see if changes to the SAFE-T Act and Pretrial Fairness Act were part of their 2026 agenda.
We haven’t heard back from Welch’s office, and a spokesman for Harmon said there will at least be discussions on the law.
“The whole purpose of the General Assembly’s session is to make refinements to laws,” said Harmon spokesman John Patterson. “We look forward to reviewing ideas.
