Illinois Adopts Tough New 'Snitch' Testimony Law

SPRINGFIELD, IL — Illinois leads the country in wrongful convictions due to false inmate testimony, according to reports, and a new Illinois law sponsored by a Tinley Park lawmaker is expected to change that. On Jan. 1, 2019, Senate Bill 1830 will become law, meaning a hearing to weigh inmate witness reliability before trial will be required in certain types of cases.

The text of SB 1830, sponsored by Democratic Sen. Michael Hastings of Tinley Park, and Democratic Rep. Art Turner of Chicago, says that in cases of murder, sexual assault and aggravated arson, inmates who testify against others will be vetted before their testimony is heard in trial.

This is to prevent them from giving false statements in exchange for lenience from the state, the Innocence Project said on their website.

Illinois' top spot among such wrongful convictions is "a dubious leadership," said John Hanlon, executive director of the Illinois Innocence Project, according to the Peoria Journal Star. Illinois has 18 cases in which jailhouse informants' testimonies have led to convictions that were later overturned. "Hopefully, this bill will take a big step toward correcting that," he said.

Gov. Bruce Rauner had vetoed the bill, but the Illinois Senate and House overwhelmingly overrode the governor's veto with votes of 54–1 and 80–31, respectively, in November.

Rauner wrote in his veto message that the state "should not further hinder the ability of our state’s attorneys to prosecute these serious crimes or curb the roles of juries in appropriately weighing the testimony presented to them."

However, Hanlon said, jailhouse informants are "highly incentivized" to provide information to authorities.

The case of Marvin Reeves and Ronald Kitchen, who were wrongfully convicted of murdering five people in Chicago, including three children, is a strong example. Willie Williams, who was incarcerated at the time, told police that Kitchen admitted to committing the crime with Reeves.

Kitchen was arrested afterwards and went through "16 hours of alleged abuse and torture," the Journal Star reported. “In my mind, only two paths existed: They were going to torture me to death, or I would have to confess to a crime I didn’t do," Kitchen later wrote in his book "My Midnight Years: Surviving Jon Burge’s Police Torture Ring and Death Row."

See the full Peoria Journal Star report here.

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