Illinois House lawmakers passed a bill Thursday that, if signed by Gov. JB Pritzker, will create stricter hiring processes for police agencies.
Under the bill the Illinois Senate previously approved, police agencies would not be able to offer a job unless an applicant signed a petition requiring them to send prior employment records to the agency.
These could include duty-related physical and psychological fitness-for-duty examinations, work performance records, criminal, civil, or administrative investigations of conduct, arrests, convictions, findings of guilt and guilty pleas.
There would be no date or employment restrictions. Whether it was a job at a police agency or a restaurant 20 years ago, documents would need to be collected.
The bill is in response to the July 2024 killing of Sonya Massey in Springfield. Massey called 911 for mental health emergency, but was shot and killed by the responding officer, Sangamon County Sheriff's Deputy Sean Grayson.
Democrat state Sen. Doris Turner of Springfield drafted the bill after she was struck personally by the tragedy. A close friend of Massey’s family, Turner said she felt she had to find justice for Massey.
At a news conference hours before the bill passed, Turner said the measure could prevent officers like Grayson from being on the job.
“When we call for law enforcement, it’s never a good day and the expectation is that the responding officer will live up to the motto ‘protect and serve’,” Turner said. “With the passage of Senate Bill 1953, I feel confident that going forward and over time, our communities and law enforcement will have built a trusting relationship, and I have kept my promise to my friend and Sonya’s mother.”
Republican state Rep. Dennis Tipsword, who represents parts of Bloomington-Normal, was one of 12 House lawmakers who voted against the bill. As a chief deputy for the Woodford County Sheriff's Department, Tipsword said he was concerned a prior employer could take too long to provide documents.
If a police agency has an interest in an applicant but an employer lags on providing documents, he worries a qualified candidate might not be hired.
“We might have a good applicant, we might have a good candidate,” Tipsword said. “But if a private agency or law enforcement agency doesn’t get back to us, that person doesn’t get into the door.”
House sponsor Rep. Kam Buckner, D-Chicago, said he understands Tipsword’s concerns, but said there are ways to get that information from employers.
“It will become evident early in the process if someone is going to choose ... not to comply,” Buckner said. “And there are obviously triggers in the bill to compel the information and law enforcement agencies to get that information themselves.”
McLean County Sheriff Matt Lane said the records requirement would not change the hiring procedures for any law enforcement agencies in the county, because he said they already seek out this information before hiring an officer.
"It actually makes it easier for us to do our job and to do that background check because it requires other agencies to comply," Lane said.
The maximum number of days an employer can take to send documents is 14. If there is no response, the hiring agency can bring the employer to court for the documents.
The bill now moves to Pritzker’s desk.
