Bill Addressing Indecency In Correctional Settings Passes Senate

COOK COUNTY, IL — A bill sponsored by local legislators that seeks to address assaults and incidents of public indecency against workers in correctional settings has passed the Illinois Senate and will now head to the state's House of Representatives. The bill, Senate Bill 3104, passed the Senate with a 57-0 vote last week, according to Cook County Sheriff Thomas Dart.

Those in correctional settings, as defined by the bill, include correctional officers, deputies, attorneys and civilians, Dart said. If the proposed law is implemented, it will allow correctional administrators to revoke up to 90 days of pre-trial or good-behavior credit from an inmate if a disciplinary board were to uphold a charge of public indecency, assault or battery to a peace officer.

It would also allow the revocation of up to 365 days for each subsequent sustained charge.

RELATED ON PATCH: 'Serial Masturbators' Rewarded With Pizza, Lawsuit Claims

The bill, proposed by Dart, was sponsored in the Senate by Sen. Bill Cunningham and will be sponsored in the House by Rep. Fran Hurley.

"The penalties within this legislation should serve as an effective deterrent against the disgraceful behavior that those working in correctional settings too often experience," Cunningham said. "It's important that we protect the men and women who do these important jobs with courage every day."