Erica Nanton, staffer with The Peoples Lobby talks to attendees at a town-hall meeting at Faith United Methodist Church in Dolton about the criminal justice system and the adverse effects it has had on members of her family. (Photo by David Pollard/for Chronicle Media)

How to correct lengthy incarceration stays for people unable to afford their bail was the main topic of a town hall meeting in Dolton with the county’s new top attorney.

Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx came out on March 19 to Faith United Methodist Church, 15015 Grant St., to meet with more than 200 area residents and talk about the initiatives she is implementing to keep low-level offenders out of jail, especially if they cannot afford the bail set for them in court.

The event was sponsored by The Peoples Lobby, a grassroots membership-driven organization devoted to support candidates and public policies that put the needs of people and the planet first before the needs of big corporations and the very rich.

Prior to Foxx’s arrival members of The Peoples Lobby led group discussions among those in attendance to come up with questions to ask Foxx. There were also testimonials from party members about how unjust the court system is to poor and minority groups.

Erica Nanton, a Peoples Lobby staffer, talked to the crowd about how she experienced mistreatment by the court system in her own family. She said a relative stayed in jail for an extended period of time because he could not afford the bail and after that things went downhill.

She said that pending charges of people are often subject to negotiations in terms of plea deals that often do nothing for the person who was arrested.

“People’s lives are getting treated like used cars,” she said.

Several nurses from Cook County Hospital said that persons who were injured or became ill during an arrest are handcuffed to their beds or restrained in some way often before their actual day in court. So a person’s innocence before being proven guilty is often subject to interpretation while receiving medical treatment.

Foxx, who was elected to the county’s state’s attorney seat, last year, told the crowd in attendance that she is about redemption. That’s why anyone who is arrested for a theft under $1,000 will not be kept in Jail if they cannot afford the bail amount.

Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx addresses approximately 200 people during a town-hall meeting on March 19 at Faith United Methodist Church in Dolton. (Photo by David Pollard)

“The punishment has to fit the crime,” she said.

She said her office can hold people accountable without people who commit crimes in a perpetual hole they can’t climb out of because of a felony conviction connected to a minor crime.

“It’s not just about a guilty plea,” she said. “They come out with a felony conviction and can’t get a job, can’t get housing, can’t get financial aid to go to school. We have to look deeper at who is in our jails and why.”

She said she has been criticized by law enforcement for her stance and that criminal should go to jail, stay there and do their time regardless of the amount stolen or financial circumstances that keep them from paying bail, but believes incarceration is not a one-size-fits-all answer.

“If they (alleged criminals) don’t have the capacity to be redeemed then we should not let anyone out of jail,” she said.

House Bill 3421 is legislation that she hopes that residents will support and already has the support of State Rep. Thaddeus Jones (D-Calumet City). The bill abolishes monetary bail under certain circumstance and would allow the court to use a risk assessment tool in certain instances during pre-trial release hearings.

The Rev. Charles Straight, pastor of Faith United Methodist Church, said he believes those in attendance were informed, but hopes they were empowered to help Foxx and the community effect change.

“It’s about getting people to wake up to their civic responsibility,” he said. “I believe through the ‘Trumpification’ of the country people are becoming motivated to change their reality. Now with all the ‘walls’ and police brutality people have decided to ask themselves ‘What can I do? What can I do to make a difference?’”

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— Foxx promotes bail reform for minor crimes —