HR1210

LRB094 20237 HSS 58141 r






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HOUSE RESOLUTION


 
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    WHEREAS, The adult female prison population in the State of 
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Illinois more than quadrupled over the past 20 years to 2,725 
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at the end of 2005; and

 
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    WHEREAS, The rate of growth of the women's prison 
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population in Illinois has been twice that of men's since 1994; 
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and
 
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    WHEREAS, Of this population, less than 30% of these women 
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were incarcerated for committing violent crimes; and
 
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    WHEREAS, Cook County Jail currently houses about 1,300 
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women on any given day and, of this population, approximately 
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90% are charged with non-violent crimes; and
 
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    WHEREAS, In prisons in the State of Illinois, 82% of women 
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are mothers and almost 50% have children under five years of 
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age; and
 
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    WHEREAS, Each year at least 25,000 children in the State of 
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Illinois are impacted by maternal incarceration; and
 
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    WHEREAS, In the State of Illinois, at least 60,000 minor 
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children will have their mothers spend time in a State prison 
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while they are children; and

 
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    WHEREAS, An estimated 80% of all incarcerated women in the 
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State of Illinois suffer from substance abuse problems; 
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however, the State of Illinois can place fewer than 20% of all 
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incarcerated women into its substance abuse programs; and

 
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    WHEREAS, It is a known fact that drug addiction causes 
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crime, destroys the family structure, creates havoc in 
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neighborhoods, and leaves paths of destruction in its wake; 
 


 






HR1210
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LRB094 20237 HSS 58141 r




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individuals convicted of crimes who have not received 
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meaningful treatment while incarcerated continue to commit 
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offenses; and

 
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    WHEREAS, In the United States by the end of 2004, women 
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were 9.4% percent of all prison and jail inmates, up from 6.1% 
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in 1995; and

 
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    WHEREAS, Community-based alternatives to incarceration for 
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women convicted of non-violent offenses would allow children to 
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stay with their mothers while their mothers receive appropriate 
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treatment; with the appropriate treatment, the mothers would be 
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less likely to commit additional offenses and would be able to 
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re-enter society as tax-paying citizens; in addition, their 
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children would be less likely to become the next generation of 
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incarcerated individuals; therefore, be it

 
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    RESOLVED, BY THE  HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE 
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NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that 
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we recognize May 12, 2006, as Mothers in Prison, Children in 
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Crisis Day in the State of Illinois; and be it further

 
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    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be 
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presented to Chicago Legal Advocacy for Incarcerated Mothers 
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(CLAIM).