Three years ago, Gov. JB Pritzker signed into law the Community Emergency Services and Supports Act, also known as the Stephon Watts Act.
Stephon was a young man with autism killed by Calumet City police in 2012 during a mental health crisis. Afterward, friends and family recognized that the killing was driven in part by police use of criminal law enforcement tactics in a situation that required a mental health treatment approach. The same problem later was recognized in the killing of Laquan McDonald in Chicago and now Sonya Massey in the Springfield area.
This summer, news reports identified another incident. A juvenile in a mental health crisis was nearly killed by “deadly force” by a Chicago police officer who put the boy on the ground and choked him, only relenting when the boy told him to “blow my brains out.” All the victims were people of color.
A better-resourced and more assertive effort to implement the Stephon Watts Act would reduce the likelihood of similar tragedies. In the three years since Pritzker signed the significant policy change legislation, there have been multiple delays in implementation as gencies try to work out the details to make mobile mental health professionals operational for emergency calls throughout the state.
This new legislation requires 911 operators to refer calls appropriate for mental and behavioral health to mental health professionals instead of police. In jurisdictions where protocols are in place, there is a significant reduction in harm rates and higher rates of appropriate mental health care for the people who need it.
The state needs to allocate more financial resources and staffing to coordinate the law’s implementation.
The law prioritizes mental health providers as initial responders to mental health-related emergency calls and requires police to coordinate with them when police are dispatched to calls that turn out not to involve criminal activity.
With this law, Illinois is saying that policing should be handled by police, and professionals trained in health care should handle the health care — and a mental health crisis falls under health care.
Achieving the policy vision of the law is worth the time, effort and resources. By putting every call for help on police, we are putting good police in situations that cannot be resolved with criminal law enforcement tactics, and that puts the lives of Illinoisans at risk. It is past time for Illinois to move forward.
Candace Coleman, community strategy specialist and criminal justice community organizer, Access Living
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Check the facts on gun deaths
On Aug. 28, the PBS NewsHour on WTTW presented a special report by Judy Woodruff on how groups in Chicago are countering the narrative that their city is a hotbed of violence. Her report was introduced this way: “Chicago has one of the highest rates of gun deaths of any major city in the country.”
It is very disappointing that due diligence wasn’t done beforehand. In fact, in 2022, Chicago ranked 27th of major cities in gun homicide rates, according to Everytown’s analysis of FBI data, looking at deaths per 100,000 people.
William Sellers, Lincoln Square
Stop with the false claims of ‘illegals’ voting
This is in response to reader Mike Daly’s letter to the editor titled “Dems, protect voter integrity.” Illinois elections are free and fair, and illegal voting is not an issue.
I have been an election judge in a number of recent elections and I strongly recommend you do the same. Go through the training, volunteer with your neighbors and take the oath that states in part that “I will support the Constitution of the United States” and learn how voting works.
If that job isn’t for you, I would recommend being an official poll watcher and be part of the process of ensuring a free and fair election. Repeating the lie that elections are rigged or not fair, or that there are “illegals” voting can be countered by you and people who support your views by getting involved in elections. Information may be found at elections.il.gov.
Tom Wheeler, West Rogers Park
Property tax circuit breakers work
We are writing in response to Commissioner George Cardenas’ commentary advocating for the implementation of property tax circuit breakers in Illinois (“Circuit breakers’ would ease burden of soaring Cook County property taxes”).
We couldn’t agree more with Commissioner Cardenas’ call to action.
Last year, Kids First Chicago conducted workshops with more than 160 parents from across Chicago, exploring the root causes driving families to leave the city. These conversations, which involved over 1,500 people-hours of in-depth discussions, revealed a clear consensus: Chicago’s high cost of living is a significant factor driving families away.
Our subsequent report, “Chicago’s Enrollment Crisis: Adopting Parent-led Solutions,” underscored that property taxes, in particular, are a critical issue for Chicago’s low- and middle-income families.
As Cardenas highlighted, Illinois’ current property tax system is regressive, disproportionately burdening those who can least afford it. This reality is especially troubling in gentrifying areas, where rising property taxes threaten to displace long-term residents.
Circuit breaker programs offer a potentially powerful solution by providing targeted property tax relief based on a household’s income. Importantly, these programs can be designed to benefit both property owners and renters alike.
In Chicago, the burden of increased property taxes is often passed on to renters, leading to higher rents. This has created an unsustainable situation where nearly 1 in 2 renter households in Chicago is “housing cost-burdened,” meaning they spend 30% or more of their monthly income on rent and utilities. Even more alarming, our analysis found about 1 in 4 of all Chicago renter households is “severely housing cost burdened,” with 50% or more of their income going to landlords and utility companies.
The parents we engaged overwhelmingly supported the idea of a circuit breaker program, which would make property taxation fairer and help stabilize communities by reducing the financial pressures that force families to leave their homes and neighborhoods.
Incorporating circuit breakers into Illinois’ tax policy is a necessary step toward making Chicago a more affordable and attractive place for families.
We urge state policymakers to prioritize the adoption of a circuit breaker program as part of a broader strategy to keep families in Chicago and make our city a place where everyone can thrive.
Hal Woods, chief of policy, and Tierra Pearson, community engagement coordinator, Kids First Chicago
Don’t blame ‘Defund Police’ for hiring problems
The opinion piece by retired suburban police chief Tom Weitzel is way off the mark, especially in blaming the “Defund the Police” movement for the lower hiring standards that led to the fatal shooting of an unarmed woman who called the police for help in Sangamon County, only to be killed by the responding officer (“To prevent another shooting like Sonya Massey’s, police departments must do a better job of hiring”).
Anti-police activism is an unpopular ideology that has very little actual political power and almost no say in who actually becomes an officer. That is the province of politicians who appoint the police chiefs who make those decisions.
Those politicians in question are not subjected to any “severe vetting,” to borrow a phrase from the chief.
The last time I checked, America is still a democracy where people have the right to espouse their ideas, no matter how unpopular they may be. It is unfair to blame them for bad policies they did nothing to create.
David L. Milligan, Portage Park
Aim for bipartisanship, not centrism
It seems that a good number of Democrats and Republicans during this presidential campaign are always looking for candidates who support centrist positions. The problem appears to be they have a difficult time defining what centrist positions really are. For example, several editorial opinions have suggested that Vice President Kamala Harris could improve her chances if she doesn’t move too far to the left. Other opinions have said that former President Donald Trump would do better if he would stop pushing far right rhetoric.
What is far left or far right? Based upon my discussions with friends and associates, I have come to the conclusion that the definition of center politics depends more on individual beliefs than specific platforms or agendas. Therein lies the problem. Trump believes large tax cuts for the wealthy is centrist. Harris believes a woman’s right to choose is centrist. Yet, our country is deeply divided on these two issues alone.
I firmly believe the real meaning of center lies in the term bipartisan. We used to enjoy a Congress that was able to come together on both sides and agree on legislation that was good for the country. The process included debate, compromise and sometimes pressure from the voting public.
In my opinion bipartisan agreements offer the best definition of center positions. However, it appears that bipartisan legislation has gone the way of the dinosaur.
What is my point? Instead of looking for candidates who we think are centrists, I believe we should focus on candidates who believe in and are willing to support bipartisan legislation. I believe the real center is produced more by bipartisan efforts than platform positions. Why? Because we have a tough time agreeing on what is centrist.
George Comer, Crown Point, Indiana
Grocery merger is ‘ridiculous’
If I understand this correctly, Jewel’s parent company Albertsons threatens to cut locations and workers’ jobs, unless they are permitted to merge operations with its major competitor, Kroger.
If the merger is approved, the “new” company will cut locations and workers’ jobs. The only difference is that the leadership will make out like bandits, while consumers and Jewel employees suffer. Ridiculous.
Robert A. Kezelis, Palos Heights
Close low-enrollment schools
When sales drop in private companies, cuts are made to balance the budget and remain in business. The same should be done at CPS with the schools that have fewer than 75 students.
There is no reason that millions should be spent to maintain huge school buildings when those students could be shifted to other schools with available space, along with their teachers and staff. No one wants to go to a new school, but with our state and city facing huge budget shortages, tough decisions must be made. There is no other money to be found, and taxpayers should not be burdened once again with higher taxes and fees.
Mike Kirchberg, Little Italy
Making walls work
I’m responding to Peter Caruso’s recent letter suggesting that since walls worked to keep protesters out at the Democratic National Convention, they will work everywhere. His premise is perhaps correct but only if every foot of said wall can be constantly manned and monitored.
John Hankes, Streeterville