The McHenry County state’s attorney said more than 50% of non-local defendants released under the SAFE-T Act after being arrested for retail theft failed to show up in court this year.
34 people have been indicted for felony retail theft, which is a theft over $300, in McHenry County in 2024.
Only six of the 34 people are residents of McHenry County, according to McHenry County State’s Attorney Patrick Kenneally.
“The remainder were from outside the county, mostly hailing from Cook County, no doubt emboldened by Cook County’s non-enforcement of the felony retail theft statute as written,” Kenneally said Friday.
The state’s attorney said none of the non-local defendants were alleged to have stolen food or water.
“Rather, most of what was allegedly stolen were luxury items, alcohol, or electronics,” Kenneally said.
A person cannot be held pending trial for felony retail theft under the SAFE-T Act even if a judge believes their criminal record and past failures to appear in court indicate they should be held in custody.
Kenneally said that more than half of the non-local defendants released failed to appear for their court date after being arrested, resulting in the prosecutions being stalled.
“In other words, justice and restitution for local businesses under the SAFE-T Act is dependent on the criminal defendant, who had no problem making it out to McHenry County to allegedly commit a theft, being willing to voluntarily return without any meaningful collateral to ensure that they actually will,” Kenneally said.
The state’s attorney said justice will continue to be delayed until law enforcement makes contact with the defendants and arrests them, which could take weeks, months or years.
“… [the] taxpayers bear the expense of transporting them back to McHenry County where they will likely then be held, which judges should have had the discretion to do in the first place,” Kenneally said.