As part of the passage of the death penalty abolition bill in 2011, funds from the Capital Litigation Fund were reallocated to the Death Penalty Abolition (DPA) Fund, as administered by The Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority (ICJIA). The goals of the DPA are to enhance public safety and to increase support of the survivors of homicide victims.

The first phase of DPA implementation begins with a collaboration between ICJIA and the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board (ILETSB). The two groups are working to develop an advanced investigator training program.

ICADP continues to monitor the administration of the DPA and is pleased that former death penalty funds are enhancing programs that support survivors of homicide victims and increase public safety. We are proud to have led the passage of legislation that not only ended a broken system but went a step farther by developing preventative and sustainable programs that improve systems for survivors.

For more information on the Death Penalty Abolition Fund and surrounding efforts, go to www.icjia.state.il.us/victimsaid.

This Friday marks the one year anniversary of abolition in Illinois. We were pleased that the Chicago Sun-Times ran an opinion piece marking the event and highlighting all the ways Illinois is better off being death penalty free. http://tinyurl.com/7romf6t

Illinois is in good company. Across the country, popular support of the death penalty is falling, the number of executions have declined and the number of death sentences have decreased to less than 100 in 2011. Questions regarding the death penalty's arbitrariness and inconsistencies, coupled with growing concerns of bloated capital punishment costs, have ignited a decline in popular support for a system that is not working. The movement to end the death penalty is gaining traction. Read the full report from The Death Penalty Information Center here: http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/documents/2011__Year__End.pdf

Welcome to the 16th state without the death penalty!

On July 1st, 2011, SB3539, the bill which repealed the broken death penalty system in Illinois became law. Illinois has officially joined the ranks of New Jersey, New York and New Mexico by rejecting this costly capital punishment system which risks executing the innocent and harms murder victims' families. We truly have something special to celebrate this holiday weekend!

However, amidst the celebration we must not lose sight of the fact that the threat of reinstatement is a real one. In the regular session this past spring, our opposition introduced five bills to bring back Illinois’ death penalty. Three of those five passed through committee. Through strategic lobbying and organizing efforts, ICADP was able to stop these bills from being called, but that doesn’t mean we won’t see new reinstatement bills as soon as next session. Our work is not done yet.

Luckily, we have a plan.

Come find out at the Annual Meeting! And don't forget to renew your membership!

Repeal in Illinois is noted as one of the key indicators in the changing tide toward abolition in the United States in this insightful victims-focused piece from The Guardian. The voices of murder victims' family members standing up for abolition are moving to the forefront of the debate, and ICADP couldn't be happier.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/cifamerica/2011/jun/28/us-death-...