The state of Illinois has released nearly 4,000 inmates, including convicted murderers and sex offenders, from their prisons since the Chinese coronavirus crisis hit the state in early March.
Prison release records obtained by Illinois Senate Republicans reveal that close to 4,000 inmates in Illinois have either had their sentences commuted by Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) or have been released by the state’s Department of Corrections from March 1 to April 27.
The nearly 4,000 inmates include those convicted of serious, violent crimes such as second-degree murder, armed robbery, child sexual abuse, attempted murder, rape, kidnapping, domestic battery, reproducing child pornography, manslaughter, and aggravated assault.
March 1 – April 27, 2020 Il… by John Binder on Scribd
Local media outlet WREX reported that of that nearly 4,000 inmates released in Illinois, about 64 of them had been convicted of murder. About 20 to 30 other inmates were released after being convicted of attempted murder and murder-for-hire.
At least hundreds of others released were convicted of sex crimes, domestic battery, and assault. Hundreds of others were convicted of drug crimes, including producing and selling drugs like meth.
Though violent crime is down in every major category over the last month, as stay-at-home orders have kept people off the streets, overall crime is up by about nine percent compared to last year.
John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Follow him on Twitter at @JxhnBinder.