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PROPOSED RESOLUTION
COB# 322615
ISSUING A MORATORIUM ON FELONY PROSTITUTION CHARGES IN COOK COUNTY
Submitting a Proposed Resolution sponsored by Toni Preckwinkle, President and Bridget Gainer, County Commissioner; Co-sponsored by Earlean Collins, John P. Daley, John A. Fritchey, Jesus G. Garcia, Joan Patricia Murphy, Edwin Reyes, Timothy O. Schneider, Deborah Sims, Robert B. Steele and Larry Suffredin, County Commissioners.
WHEREAS, Illinois, Arizona, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Michigan, Missouri and Texas are the only eight (8) states in the Country to have a felony sentencing option for prostitution offenses; and
WHEREAS, of these eight (8) states, Illinois has the harshest sentencing option in the Country requiring only one (1) prior prostitution conviction before a felony charge option is available for subsequent offenses; and
WHEREAS, as noted by End Demand Illinois, the Department of Corrections reported 127 felony prostitution admissions for 2012, costing the state $2,011,680.00. Pretrial detention for those facing felony prostitution charges costs Cook County Department of Corrections between $5.3 to $9.5 million annually; and
WHEREAS, felony convictions make the transition out of the sex trade to the legitimate economy more difficult because those with felony convictions can be rejected from jobs, denied work authorization, denied housing and can even be evicted from their homes for having a felony conviction; and
WHEREAS, rather than continuing to treat prostitution as a crime, we must shift our resources and focus to the pimps and johns who exploit them.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the State's Attorney, the President and the members of the Cook County Board of Commissioners urge the General Assembly to pass legislation that will permanently remove the felony prostitution charge option from Illinois State Statute; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the State's Attorney, the President and members of the Cook...
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