Chicago Community Bond Fund

📝Zine drop on 6/22! Get your copy of Shifting the Narrative and hear from folks on electronic monitoring about their lives & experiences.

Event is 11am-2pm with presentations by zine creators at 12:30pm. Get your free ticket now:

Shifting the Narrative: Zine Launch Event Open house for the launch of CCBF's Shifting the Narrative zine! Come get a copy and enjoy refreshments in community.

The Pretrial Success Act passes! More funding will go towards community organizations supporting folks across Illinois during the critical pretrial phase for people awaiting trial. Read the full blog post here - https://endmoneybond.org/2024/05/29/pretrial-success-act-passes/

Today, the Illinois legislature passed the Pretrial Success Act as part of the Illinois state budget. Building upon the successful implementation of the Pretrial Fairness Act, which made Illinois the first state to completely end money bond, the Pretrial Success Act will dramatically increase access to health and human services for people awaiting trial. By January 2025, the Illinois Department of Human Services will begin providing grants to local organizations in five communities as part of a six-month pilot of the Pretrial Success Act. In July 2025, implementation will expand statewide, with recommendations for funding in each community provided by a local advisory council.

Since the Pretrial Fairness Act took effect in September, more people are maintaining employment, housing, and positive family and social connections while awaiting trial in the community. The Pretrial Success Act will help ensure that people returning to the community have access to mental health and substance use disorder assessment, case management, and treatment according to clinical standards. Funding for transportation and child care will also be available to increase court appearance rates. By increasing access to services, the Pretrial Success Act will improve community safety through addressing the root causes of harm and violence.

The old money bond system required family members to pay for their loved ones’ freedom and further destabilized the communities already most impacted by violence by extracting millions of dollars from our state’s most marginalized neighborhoods. The Pretrial Success Act will help these communities heal by increasing access to these essential services.

The Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice thanks our legislative champions, Representative Maurice West & Senator Elgie Sims, for making the Pretrial Success Act possible. We also deeply appreciate our community partners and everyone who took the time to contact their legislators about this initiative.

While we are thrilled that implementation of the Pretrial Fairness Act is going smoothly and that the legislature has allocated funds to support people awaiting trial, we know our work is not done. The Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice is committed to continuing to work towards further reducing the number of people incarcerated awaiting trial in our state, supporting stronger and more independent public defense services, and limiting the state’s use of electronic monitoring.

Read this post on our blog: https://endmoneybond.org/2024/05/29/pretrial-success-act-passes/

🌇We are sharing more about CCBF’s sunsetting plans at our town hall tomorrow evening, May 14 at 6pm. Join us to get more details and ask questions. The event is now only virtual. So come join us on zoom!

RSVP at link in bio or stories.

See you tomorrow!

🌇We are sharing more about CCBF's sunsetting plans at our town hall tomorrow evening, May 14 at 6pm. Join us to get more details and ask questions. The event is now only virtual. So come join us on zoom!

RSVP here - https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSceyMmdNaRpS_5A6MjUEJCux7qKIr6n27cjctQLUCkOXd_KEg/viewform

🌇We’ll be sharing more about CCBF's sunsetting plans at our town hall this Tuesday, May 14 at 6pm. Join us to get more details and ask questions. The event is hybrid-come in person or join virtually!

RSVP here - https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSceyMmdNaRpS_5A6MjUEJCux7qKIr6n27cjctQLUCkOXd_KEg/viewform

🌇Want to hear more about CCBF's sunsetting plans? Join our town hall on Tuesday, May 14 at 6pm to get details and ask questions. The event is hybrid, so come in person or join virtually!

RSVP here - https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSceyMmdNaRpS_5A6MjUEJCux7qKIr6n27cjctQLUCkOXd_KEg/viewform

TODAY: file a witness slip (thanks if you did it last week, and please file again now!) to support the Pretrial Success Act: bit.ly/SlipSuccessAct

💥TAKE ACTION💥

Let the Illinois House of Representatives know that our communities want the Pretrial Success Act! It's time for Illinois to invest in support services for people awaiting trial: bit.ly/SlipSuccessAct

Even if you filed a slip last week, we need you to again.

Today’s the day, y’all❗️
Get those zine submissions in‼️

Shifting the Narrative is a zine project dedicated to sharing real experiences about the harms of electronic monitoring and pretrial incarceration. Share your poems, essays, photos, illustrations, or comics with us! We are looking for one submission per person- please read the Google form for exact details about what submissions can include.

Submissions should be uploaded to the Google form at link in bio.

Any questions can be directed to [email protected].

Accepted submissions will be paid $75.
Deadline to submit is Tuesday, April 30th.

Today’s the day, y’all❗️
Get those zine submissions in‼️

Shifting the Narrative is a zine project dedicated to sharing real experiences about the harms of electronic monitoring and pretrial incarceration. Share your poems, essays, photos, illustrations, or comics with us! We are looking for one submission per person- please read the Google form for exact details about what submissions can include.

Submissions should be uploaded to the Google form: https://forms.gle/wV98nero5EUKAkJs5

Any questions can be directed to [email protected].

Accepted submissions will be paid $75.
Deadline to submit is Tuesday, April 30th.

🚨🚨URGENT! File a witness slip today to support the Pretrial Success Act!

bit.ly/SuccessActSlip

The Pretrial Success Act is scheduled for a subject matter hearing this Wednesday at 9am! We need your help showing the legislature the immense amount of community support of the Success Act!

The Pretrial Success Act will improve community safety & court appearance rates by expanding access to care through case management, mental health, and substance use services for people awaiting trial. The bill will allocate $15 million for communities to expand access to these vital voluntary services. Distribution of these funds will be informed by our communities and go to health and human services– not law enforcement.

Please submit witness slips before (9am on Wednesday, April 29th) and share the link with your friends & family. You can file a witness slip by:

- Going to bit.ly/SuccessActSlip & select "Create Witness Slip"

-Filling out the form with your information. Note that most fields are mandatory. If you do not officially represent an organization, write “SELF.”

- In the "Subject Matter" drop down menu, select "SB3470", click the "proponent" button and select "record of appearance only".

- Click "I Agree to the ILGA Terms of Agreement." box

- Click "Create Slip" button

‼️Only one more day to submit your zine submission ‼️

Shifting the Narrative is a zine project dedicated to sharing real experiences about the harms of electronic monitoring and pretrial incarceration. Share your poems, essays, photos, illustrations, or comics with us! We are looking for one submission per person- please read the Google form for exact details about what submissions can include.

Submissions should be uploaded to the Google form: https://forms.gle/wV98nero5EUKAkJs5

Any questions can be directed to [email protected].

Accepted submissions will be paid $75.
Deadline to submit is Tuesday, April 30th.

📝 Zine submissions due Tuesday. Tell your peeps!! 💕

Shifting the Narrative is a zine project dedicated to sharing real experiences about the harms of electronic monitoring and pretrial incarceration. Share your poems, essays, photos, illustrations, or comics with us! We are looking for one submission per person- please read the Google form for exact details about what submissions can include.

Submissions should be uploaded to the Google form: https://forms.gle/wV98nero5EUKAkJs5

Any questions can be directed to [email protected].

Accepted submissions will be paid $75.
Deadline to submit is April 30, 2024.

👀 CCBF is still looking for submissions!! 👀

Shifting the Narrative is a zine project dedicated to sharing real experiences about the harms of electronic monitoring and pretrial incarceration. Share your poems, essays, photos, illustrations, or comics with us! We are looking for one submission per person- please read the Google form for exact details about what submissions can include.

Submissions should be uploaded to the Google form: https://forms.gle/wV98nero5EUKAkJs5

Any questions can be directed to [email protected].

Accepted submissions will be paid $75.
Deadline to submit is April 30, 2024.

CCBF is still looking for submissions to Shifting the Narrative - a zine project dedicated to sharing real experiences about the harms of electronic monitoring and pretrial incarceration. Share your poems, essays, photos, illustrations, or comics with us! We are looking for one submission per person- please read the Google form for exact details about what submissions can include.

Submissions should be uploaded to the Google form: https://forms.gle/wV98nero5EUKAkJs5

Any questions can be directed to [email protected].

Accepted submissions will be paid $75.
Deadline to submit is April 30, 2024.

Go check out the new report from the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice, which outlines how our state can address calls for more funding and resources while centering the communities most harmed by the money bond system. The work didn’t end with money bond. We must continue to push towards next steps and this report is the roadmap.

Investing in Pretrial Justice in Illinois: A Vision for Supporting Communities After the End of Money Bond - Coalition to End Money Bond In the six months since the Pretrial Fairness Act took effect, multiple state agencies have called for additional resources to support the law’s implementation. The Illinois Network for Pretrial justice is excited to share our new report, “Investing in Pretrial Justice in Illinois: A Vision for ...

Happening tomorrow!

Join the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice on Thursday, April 18th at 6pm for the virtual launch event of a new report: Investing in Pretrial Justice in Illinois: A Vision for Supporting Communities After the End of Money Bond.

Register here: https://forms.gle/DvTNxhND7Cgh4YJL8

Join us on Thursday at 6pm for the virtual launch event of our new report "Investing in Pretrial Justice in Illinois". We'll feature an overview of the report along with a discussion about the resources our communities need to thrive!

Register Here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfhhx3ImVjL1JQ8UTA77fE8ewkGtfxP16S6E6Qv3RhqSXmRqg/viewform

After years of posting bond and fighting for pretrial freedom, Chicago Community Bond Fund is transitioning to a new phase.

As we shared in February, we are no longer posting bond due to the historic implementation of the Pretrial Fairness Act, and our plan is to wind down our post-release support and active programs by June 30, 2024.

Since 2015, CCBF’s revolving fund has paid 1,076 bonds for 917 people, amounting to $7,380,607.40.

To our entire community, we send a heartfelt thank you. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

We see each of you. We see all of the ways this community has shown up time and time again for folks incarcerated at Cook County Jail and beyond.

To all our people, folks free and folks still in a cage: We Love You! We! We! Love You!

Full blog post here - https://chicagobond.org/2024/04/12/a-letter-of-gratitude-and-farewell-ccbfs-sunsetting-and-next-steps-2/

Hey hey, join in next week!

Join the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice on April 18th at 6pm for the virtual launch event of a new report: Investing in Pretrial Justice in Illinois: A Vision for Supporting Communities After the End of Money Bond.

Register here: https://forms.gle/DvTNxhND7Cgh4YJL8

Join the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice on April 18th at 6pm for the virtual launch event of our new report: Investing in Pretrial Justice in Illinois: A Vision for Supporting Communities After the End of Money Bond.

Register here: https://forms.gle/DvTNxhND7Cgh4YJL8

While the end of money bond is what caught headlines, the Pretrial Fairness Act went far beyond ending wealth-based jailing—it transformed the state’s pretrial legal system. These changes have led to questions about whether certain court actors, law enforcement agencies, and service providers need additional funding to adapt to the new system. “Investing Pretrial Justice In Illinois” responds to these urgent questions and puts forward a framework to holistically address them.

This event will take place online and feature an overview of the new report along with two short panel discussions with public defenders and service providers about the resources our communities need to thrive!

Featured Speakers: Briana Payton (Chicago Appleseed), Colette Payne (Women’s Justice Institute), Lauren Wright (Illinois Partners in Human Services), Stephanie Kollmann (Children Family Justice Center) and more.

Register here: https://forms.gle/DvTNxhND7Cgh4YJL8

Just reminding folks that Chicago Community Bond Fund is still looking for submissions!

Shifting the Narrative is a zine project dedicated to sharing real experiences about the harms of electronic monitoring and pretrial incarceration. Share your poems, essays, photos, illustrations, or comics with us! We are looking for one submission per person- please read the Google form for exact details about what submissions can include.

Submissions should be uploaded to the Google form: https://forms.gle/wV98nero5EUKAkJs5

Any questions can be directed to [email protected].

Accepted submissions will be paid $75.
Deadline to submit is April 30, 2024.

Chicago Community Bond Fund is excited to announce the Shifting the Narrative zine project!

Shifting the Narrative is a zine project dedicated to sharing real experiences about the harms of electronic monitoring and pretrial incarceration. Share your poems, essays, photos, illustrations, or comics with us! We are looking for one submission per person- please read the Google form for exact details about what submissions can include.

Submissions should be uploaded to the Google form: https://forms.gle/wV98nero5EUKAkJs5

Any questions can be directed to [email protected].

Accepted submissions will be paid $75.
Deadline to submit is April 30, 2024.

Happening this week on Wednesday 3/20!

THIS WEDNESDAY EVENING! Join The Women's Justice Institute - WJI, The Network - Advocating Against Domestic Violence, and over 30 poets live from inside of Logan Correctional Center, Decatur Correctional Center, Fox Valley Adult Transition Center, and Cook County Jail as they share their powerful words about surviving sexual assault and domestic violence. As we prepare for Sexual Assault Awareness Month and Poetry Month, as well as concluding the Criminalized Survivors Learning Series, we will join as a community to be moved by these fantastic artists. We will be joined by amazing emcees and spoken word artists Sandra Brown and Bella Bahhs. Register to attend this incredible, moving, and free performance at https://thenetwork.corsizio.com/ . Let's show survivors that the community shows up to hear them, to support them, and to believe them.

Six months ago today, Illinois implemented the Pretrial Fairness Act and became the first state in the country to completely end the use of money bond. It is still early, but overall, stakeholders across Illinois have reported smooth and successful implementation. We want to take this moment to provide an update about implementation and to be clear about what we don’t yet know.

The Number of People Incarcerated in County Jails is Down

- Preliminary data shows that the number of people incarcerated in county jails has decreased! People are no longer held in jail simply because their loved ones can’t afford to buy their freedom. The law is ensuring that more people maintain employment, housing, and positive family and social connections while awaiting trial in the community.

- These reductions have important implications for fairness in the justice system. People jailed pretrial are more likely to be convicted and serve longer sentences than those who are not incarcerated as they await trial, ensuring the justice system is more equitable.

- Research from other jurisdictions indicates that we can take steps towards ending mass incarceration while maintaining and even improving community safety.

Money is Staying in Vulnerable Communities

- Wealth-based pretrial detention has taken resources from communities for decades, disproportionately impacting Black and Latinx communities and families living in poverty.

- From 2016 to 2020, Illinoisians paid anywhere from $121 million to more than $154 million dollars per year in money bonds. That money will now remain with family members across the state to contribute to the overall well-being and economic security of entire communities.

Hearings are More Robust — And Tied to Safety Instead of Wealth

- Prior to the implementation of the Pretrial Fairness Act, detention hearings were brief—4 minutes on average—and judges primarily chose dollar amounts with little attention to other conditions of release or outright detention. Now, hearings are more robust. An average detention hearing lasts 22 minutes.

- Accused people are represented by an attorney who can present evidence about their client’s circumstances for the judge’s consideration. Courts now make individualized inquiries into an accused person’s risk to a specific person or their community and/or their risk of flight while awaiting trial.

What We Don’t Know

- Some opponents of the Pretrial Fairness Act have pointed to limited or misleading statistics to draw false conclusions about the impact of the law. Generally, the statistics cited are related to a single county over a short or irregular period of time. The reporting of those statistics is not verified and does not constitute a robust enough sample to reflect any trends accurately. They are, put differently, no more reliable than if we claimed pretrial reform was succeeding based on short-trend decreases in crime rates. It is simply premature to draw such conclusions.

- Other opponents of the Pretrial Fairness Act provide anecdotes and claim there is “a revolving door.” Those are anecdotes, not evidence of a trend. In contrast, researchers at the Loyola University of Chicago Center for Criminal Justice are diligently studying the impact of the law by collecting statewide data spanning several years.

- Robust, systematic data collection over time will allow researchers to draw appropriate and accurate conclusions about the impact of the law. Researchers will collect data from all 92 of the state’s jails and will study court outcomes, pretrial detention rates, jail populations, rearrest rates, and the impact on marginalized communities.

Flaws of Comparing Release Decisions Pre- and Post-Reform

- Many opponents of the Pretrial Fairness Act suggest that judges now release people only because they are required to under the new law and that before, judges would have detained these same people. That’s misleading. Before enactment of pretrial reform, most people paid their bonds within a week—even when charged with offenses now eligible for detention. Judges have as many or more options for setting conditions of release or denying release outright under the new law with the sole exception of requiring money to secure release.

By eliminating money bond, Illinois has taken a critical step towards addressing mass incarceration. Our work, however, is far from over. First, it is essential that the Administrative Office of Illinois Courts comes into full compliance with the law by collecting and publishing data from all of Illinois county court systems. In order to properly monitor implementation and hold their local stakeholders accountable, communities need to be able to review comprehensive data. For too long, Illinois’ pretrial system went without proper scrutiny. Making our courts more transparent is essential to the success of the Pretrial Fairness Act.

We also have more work to do to address the harm rampant pretrial jailing has caused our communities. Key to that is passing the Pretrial Success Act, which will increase court appearance rates and improve community safety by expanding access to case management, mental healthcare, and substance use treatment for people awaiting trial. The safest communities are the ones that have the most resources, not the most people in jail. It’s past time for Illinois to take steps to ensure that all communities have the resources they need to thrive.

CONTACT YOUR LEGISLATORS AND TELL THEM YOU SUPPORT THE PRETRIAL SUCCESS ACT: https://actionnetwork.org/letters/tell-your-legislators-to-support-the-pretrial-success-act/

RSVP now for tomorrow night's panel event: https://forms.gle/Q5axpgDYKbBKcauX7

Tomorrow night, join us for a discussion about art & organizing against mass incarceration at the Pretrial Fairness art exhibit hosted by the DragonFly Gallery!

Register here: https://forms.gle/vdBmgc7qEdpBqV1M6

IL folks, we ended money bond, now let's keep the momentum going: read more about the Pretrial Success Act to expand health and human services to people awaiting trial!

Last September, Illinois implemented the Pretrial Fairness Act and became the first state in the country to completely end money bail. The Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice is now working with Representative Maurice West and Senator Elgie Sims to pass the Pretrial Success Act, a $15 million appropriations request that will expand access to health and human services for people awaiting trial.

Since Illinois ended money bond, the number of people incarcerated awaiting trial has begun to drop across the state. More people are now able to maintain employment, housing, and connections to loved ones in the community while their cases are pending. Illinois has the opportunity to set people awaiting trial up for success by increasing access to voluntary services and addressing the underlying challenges that may have brought them into contact with law enforcement.

Under the Pretrial Success Act, community-based organizations would have the opportunity to apply for funding to increase access to essential services like mental health and substance use assessment, case management, and treatment according to clinical standards. Funding for transportation and child care will also be available to support people in attending their court dates. By increasing access to services, the Pretrial Success Act will improve community safety through addressing the root causes of harm and violence.

Requiring family members of accused people to pay money bonds further destabilized the same communities most impacted by violence because it extracted millions of dollars from our state’s most marginalized neighborhoods. Many of these communities are among the most underserved in the state, and the need for services is desperate. The Pretrial Success Act will help these communities heal by prioritizing them for investment and increasing access to these essential services.

Contact your legislators and tell them you support the Pretrial Success Act: https://actionnetwork.org/letters/tell-your-legislators-to-support-the-pretrial-success-act/

Join us for this fabulous event coming up on Sunday!
Come see Art into Action from 2-4pm on February 25.

Details:

Join the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice at the DragonFly Gallery on February 25th at 2pm as we celebrate the three year anniversary of the Pretrial Fairness Act being signed into law with the opening of “Art in Action: How Artists Helped Illinois End Money Bond”! This exhibit features art created to support the fight for pretrial justice in Illinois including prints, banners, signs, short films and photos documenting our movement for pretrial fairness.

The event will feature a short program beginning at 2:30pm featuring State Senator Robert Peters and movement organizers.

Art in Action: How Artists Helped Illinois End Money Bond Join the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice at the DragonFly Gallery to celebrate the three year anniversary of the Pretrial Fairness Act

Join us on February 25th for this event! We look forward to celebrating with our community:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/art-in-action-how-artists-helped-illinois-end-money-bond-tickets-828025555727?aff=oddtdtcreator

Art has the power to inform, challenge and change public opinion. In Illinois, artists played a crucial role in the movement to end money bond. For nearly a decade, communities across our state worked together to pass the Pretrial Fairness Act, a law that has made Illinois the first state to end the practice of jailing people who were awaiting trial simply because they couldn’t afford to purchase their freedom.

Join the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice at the DragonFly Gallery on February 25th at 2pm as we celebrate the three year anniversary of the Pretrial Fairness Act being signed into law with the opening of “Art in Action: How Artists Helped Illinois End Money Bond”! This exhibit features art created to support the fight for pretrial justice in Illinois including prints, banners, signs, short films and photos documenting our movement for pretrial fairness.

The event will feature a short program beginning at 2:30pm featuring State Senator Robert Peters and movement organizers.

Register here:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/art-in-action-how-artists-helped-illinois-end-money-bond-tickets-828025555727?aff=eand

CCBF turned 8 years old in 2023, and our amazing community supported us once again. We were able to raise $52,204 for our end-of-year campaign to bolster our post-release support efforts and our legal advocacy for people fighting their cases. Thank you, thank you!

We appreciate every donor, volunteer, activist, and follower who is with us as we create the world we need with mutual aid and community care

In January 2021, the Illinois general assembly voted in support of ending money bond.

Three years later, the Pretrial Fairness Act is dramatically reducing the number of people incarcerated pretrial and making our communities safer.

Michael O'Connor died in Cook County Jail on Christmas Day. His family is calling for a full investigation.

Michael was the 17th person to die while incarcerated in Cook County Jail in 2023. https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/criminal-justice/ct-michael-oconnor-family-20231228-20231229-jbqpqbd5sbaehkgb6jhazq5cg4-story.html

We honor Michael's life and each life that is taken by this deadly system. Sign the petition today to stop the loss of life at Cook County Jail: https://actionnetwork.org/petitions/sign-on-to-this-petition-to-stop-the-loss-of-life-in-cook-county-jail/

Sign on to this petition to Stop the Loss of Life in Cook County Jail Since January 1st, 14 people have died while incarcerated in the Cook County Jail. From overdose deaths to loss due to violence, it is clear that people locked in the confines of the jail are not being kept safe. The conditions of jails are inherently deadly and negligence and abuses allowed under t...

The year is winding down but CCBF's end-of-year campaign is still going! Can you help us get to $65,000 by December 31st? Rachel & Gerald want you to know how much you help make our work possible. Thank you so much to everyone who has donated so far! ✨✨✨

https://secure.givelively.org/donate/chicago-community-bond-fund/2023-end-of-year-campaign