Full Text of SR0914 94th General Assembly
SR0914 94TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
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| SENATE RESOLUTION
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| WHEREAS, Senator Ed Petka has served the people of the 42nd | 3 |
| Senate District with honor and distinction for 14 years, from | 4 |
| 1993 through 2006; and he served as a member of the Illinois | 5 |
| House of Representatives from 1987 through 1992; and | 6 |
| WHEREAS, Senator Petka has served honorably as Senate | 7 |
| Deputy Republican Leader, from 2003 through 2006, and as a | 8 |
| member of the Senate Executive, Executive Appointments, | 9 |
| Judiciary, and Rules Committees; and | 10 |
| WHEREAS, He became one of the chamber's most respected | 11 |
| members, known for his vast knowledge of constitutional law and | 12 |
| unwavering support for traditional American values, which he | 13 |
| often shared in debate on the Senate floor and as a member of | 14 |
| the Senate Executive and Judiciary Committees; and | 15 |
| WHEREAS, Senator Petka's legislative accomplishments on | 16 |
| behalf of the people of Illinois include sponsorship of | 17 |
| landmark anti-crime legislation, including an anti-terrorism | 18 |
| bill targeting domestic terrorists, Truth in Sentencing | 19 |
| guidelines requiring violent offenders to serve their entire | 20 |
| prison sentence, the child sex offender notification law, | 21 |
| legislation that gave authorities new tools to combat gang | 22 |
| crime and provided protections for crime victims, and | 23 |
| legislation that closed the loophole in Illinois' child | 24 |
| pornography law; and | 25 |
| WHEREAS, His strong sense of traditional justice made | 26 |
| Senator Petka a legislator ahead of the cultural curve; he | 27 |
| authored a law that allowed DNA testing for those on Death Row | 28 |
| to possibly avoid a wrongful conviction, helped to strengthen | 29 |
| private property rights in cases involving eminent domain abuse | 30 |
| by local government, and fought to ensure that the Second | 31 |
| Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear arms |
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| are protected, while at the same time working to make sure that | 2 |
| those who violently misuse firearms are properly punished; and | 3 |
| WHEREAS, Senator Petka's efforts on behalf of the people of | 4 |
| the 42nd Senate District included
spearheading efforts in the | 5 |
| General Assembly to funnel State assistance to repair the | 6 |
| schools in Plainfield destroyed by the 1990 tornado, working | 7 |
| with federal officials to get funding to rebuild St. Mary's | 8 |
| Immaculate Church and School that was also destroyed by the | 9 |
| tornado, sponsoring legislation creating the Joliet Arsenal | 10 |
| Development Authority, teaming up with Dr. Richard Zalar of | 11 |
| Joliet to convince State government to create a | 12 |
| first-of-its-kind alternative Alzheimer's care center, and | 13 |
| co-sponsoring the resolution authorizing construction of the | 14 |
| new Interstate 355 tollway; and | 15 |
| WHEREAS, In recognition of his leadership and expertise, | 16 |
| Senator Petka was asked to serve on the Illinois Death Penalty | 17 |
| Reform Panel in 2002 and cosponsored the recommended reforms to | 18 |
| restore integrity to the State's criminal justice system; and | 19 |
| WHEREAS, Senator Petka's long legislative career was also | 20 |
| marked by a number of honors, including ones from the Illinois | 21 |
| State's Attorney Association, the National Federation of | 22 |
| Independent Business, the State Chamber of Commerce, and the | 23 |
| Illinois Farm Bureau, recognizing his contributions to | 24 |
| anti-crime efforts, economic development, job creation, and | 25 |
| agriculture; and | 26 |
| WHEREAS, His long career in public service began first as a | 27 |
| high school history and math teacher where he earned the money | 28 |
| to put himself through law school at John Marshall; he then | 29 |
| became an accomplished Assistant State's Attorney in Will | 30 |
| County and was elected State's Attorney in 1976 by a vote of | 31 |
| the people; and he served in that capacity for 11 years; and |
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| WHEREAS, He will continue his public service career as a | 2 |
| Circuit Court Judge, having been elected to that office on | 3 |
| November 7, 2006; and | 4 |
| WHEREAS, His commitment to public service is only surpassed | 5 |
| by his commitment to his family; his wife, Phyllis; his | 6 |
| children, Jennifer, Edward Jr., Tanya, and Melinda; and his | 7 |
| four grandchildren, Alexis Grace, Ryan Jacob, Brianna Grace, | 8 |
| and Nathan Wesley; therefore, be it | 9 |
| RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL | 10 |
| ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we thank Ed Petka for | 11 |
| his continued service to the people of Illinois and honor him | 12 |
| with this resolution; and be it further | 13 |
| RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 14 |
| presented to Ed Petka with our best wishes.
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