CHICAGO – State Rep. Juliana Stratton, D-Chicago, is calling on Gov. Bruce Rauner to stand with her and help end the school-to-prison pipeline by signing important juvenile justice reforms into law.
“We should always move swiftly when working towards justice,” Stratton said. “So that’s why Governor Rauner should take the many criminal justice reforms we have sent him, immediately sign them and help create opportunities to prevent children from unfairly being swept into the criminal justice system.”
Two major criminal justice reforms that Stratton introduced this year passed both the House and Senate and now require the governor’s signature to become law. The Stratton-introduced House Bill 2663 would limit early-childhood providers from expelling vulnerable students with perceived behavioral issues and encourage them to use community services to work with children and families to address behavioral issues that students might display. In addition, the Stratton-introduced House Bill 3903 provides that schools shall not maintain criminal processing facilities on their grounds.
“Signatures from the governor on these bills could severely limit the school-to-prison pipeline,” continued Stratton. “The governor has the opportunity to stand with me and do a lot of good. He should take it.”