Agitation Rising previously reported that the Bloomington City Council would have to approve the EAGLE intergovernmental agreement between the McLean County Deputies Office and the Bloomington Police Department (BPD). This is not the case. The EAGLE agreement requires each agency funds its own equipment and training. Funding for BPD’s SWAT team has already been appropriated by the Bloomington City Council, and the agreement would not require additional funding for BPD.
Agitation Rising also implied that Task Force 6 had its own separate SWAT team. This is untrue. Task Force 6 relies on the SWAT teams of its constituent members.
In today’s strange science video, we’re going to look at the lies of the ‘science’ of polygraphy, a.k.a. lie-detector testing. And how from a scientific standpoint it’s absolute bullshit, yet in practice strangely works in some situations. This is part of a series of videos where we examine different hypothesis & theories to determine if they are science or pseudoscience.
We interview two people who have mental, behavioral, or developmental disabilities about their symptoms, their experiences with police when they were suffering a crisis, and whether they support a police response to mental/behavioral/developmental crisis.
Just as a reminder, in Illinois, a law called the Community Emergency Services & Support Act, or CESSA, requires that all mental/behavioral/developmental emergency calls for service that are nonviolent & noncriminal are responded to by alternative first responders (this is a non-police model).
The Safe-T Act, HB 3653, omnibus criminal justice law signed into law in 2021.
The members of CIRC & Afro-SOC BloNo support this law, and so do the working people of our communities. We strongly encourage you to support the reforms made by the law and do everything in your power to implement the changes with equity. Furthermore, public officials should be mindful that the working people of Illinois support efforts toward increased police accountability, transparency, and reform. The public also desires alternative institutions to address public safety. We are certain that the guidance we are providing will help to establish expectations for these domains. This guidance carefully explains what the law says, what it doesn’t say, and best practices on how to implement this law at the local level here in Illinois.
[FULL DISCLOSURE: The editor of Agitation Rising News is a founding member of CIRC.]
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE!
January 22, 2022
The Central Illinois Research Collective (CIRC) supports the new criminal justice reform law, HB 3653, signed into law by Governor J.B. Pritzker in 2021. Our organization strongly supports the principles of this law like police transparency, accountability, and alternatives to policing.
Central Illinois Research Collective (CIRC) logo
We are releasing this guidance to assist local municipalities in properly interpreting & implementing HB 3653. We believe it is important for public officials to know that our membership supports this legislation. We encourage public officials to embrace these reforms & implement them to the best of their abilities. Furthermore, our organization is looking to hold public officials accountable when it comes to this responsibility.
Our organization is co-hosting a Virtual Town Hall on Saturday, February 5th, 2022 at 1:00 PM with the AfroSocialists and Socialists of Color of Bloomington-Normal to explain the guidance in greater detail. This law has left much controversy and questions around how it will be implemented throughout Illinois. This law is much more than just the Pretrial Fairness Act. This event hopes to bring clarity to the important nuances of the law. Our Town Hall will also address follow-up laws adjusting HB 3653.
The insufferable Sheriff Jon Sandage has announced he will not be seeking re-election for a third term in 2022. Sheriff Sandage was first elected in 2014. He came to the decision after “after extensive thought and discussions with family.
“I have had the honor of serving the citizens of McLean County for 30 years, the last 6 and a half as sheriff, in one of the best departments in the state of Illinois. This decision has not been an easy one as there are still many challenges ahead for our department, and I will face them with the same dedication and vigor as I have throughout my career. I am proud of the progress we have made in my two terms as Sheriff, and this has only been possible because of all the dedicated people I work with.
“I would like to thank my family and friends for their continued support, the citizens for their faith and trust in me and our department, my staff for their hard work and professionals, but most of all, I want to thank my wife and children who have sacrificed in order to allow me to pursue the profession I love.”
