HB4576 96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

LRB096 13092 RLC 27445 b

96TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY
State of Illinois
2009 and 2010
HB4576

Introduced , by Rep. Elizabeth Coulson

SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:

725 ILCS 215/2	from Ch. 38, par. 1702
725 ILCS 215/3	from Ch. 38, par. 1703
725 ILCS 215/4	from Ch. 38, par. 1704

Amends the Statewide Grand Jury Act. Provides that a Statewide Grand Jury may be convened to investigate violations of offenses involving the corruption of a public official, including theft, fraud, extortion or the Official Misconduct Article and the Public Contracts Article of the Criminal Code of 1961.

A BILL FOR

AN ACT concerning criminal law.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Statewide Grand Jury Act is amended by changing Sections 2, 3, and 4 as follows:

(725 ILCS 215/2) (from Ch. 38, par. 1702)

Sec. 2. (a) County grand juries and State's Attorneys have always had and shall continue to have primary responsibility for investigating, indicting, and prosecuting persons who violate the criminal laws of the State of Illinois. However, in recent years organized terrorist activity directed against innocent civilians, and certain criminal enterprises, and public corruption have developed that require investigation, indictment, and prosecution on a statewide or multicounty level. The criminal enterprises exist as a result of the allure of profitability present in narcotic activity, public corruption, the unlawful sale and transfer of firearms, and streetgang related felonies and organized terrorist activity is supported by the contribution of money and expert assistance from geographically diverse sources. In order to shut off the life blood of terrorism and weaken or eliminate the criminal enterprises, assets, and property used to further these offenses must be frozen, and any profit must be removed. State statutes exist that can accomplish that goal. Among them are the offense of money laundering, the Cannabis and Controlled Substances Tax Act, violations of Articles Article 29D, 33, and 33E of the Criminal Code of 1961, the Narcotics Profit Forfeiture Act, and gunrunning. Local prosecutors need investigative personnel and specialized training to attack and eliminate these profits. In light of the transitory and complex nature of conduct that constitutes these criminal activities, the many diverse property interests that may be used, acquired directly or indirectly as a result of these criminal activities, and the many places that illegally obtained property may be located, it is the purpose of this Act to create a limited, multicounty Statewide Grand Jury with authority to investigate, indict, and prosecute: narcotic activity, including cannabis and controlled substance trafficking, narcotics racketeering, money laundering, violations of the Cannabis and Controlled Substances Tax Act, and violations of Articles Article 29D, 33, and 33E of the Criminal Code of 1961; public corruption crimes; the unlawful sale and transfer of firearms; gunrunning; and streetgang related felonies.

(b) A Statewide Grand Jury may also investigate, indict, and prosecute violations facilitated by the use of a computer of any of the following offenses: indecent solicitation of a child, sexual exploitation of a child, soliciting for a juvenile prostitute, keeping a place of juvenile prostitution, juvenile pimping, or child pornography.

(Source: P.A. 91-225, eff. 1-1-00; 92-854, eff. 12-5-02.)

(725 ILCS 215/3) (from Ch. 38, par. 1703)

Sec. 3. Written application for the appointment of a Circuit Judge to convene and preside over a Statewide Grand Jury, with jurisdiction extending throughout the State, shall be made to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Upon such written application, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court shall appoint a Circuit Judge from the circuit where the Statewide Grand Jury is being sought to be convened, who shall make a determination that the convening of a Statewide Grand Jury is necessary.

In such application the Attorney General shall state that the convening of a Statewide Grand Jury is necessary because of an alleged offense or offenses set forth in this Section involving more than one county of the State and identifying any such offense alleged; and

(a) that he or she believes that the grand jury function for the investigation and indictment of the offense or offenses cannot effectively be performed by a county grand jury together with the reasons for such belief, and

(b)(1) that each State's Attorney with jurisdiction over an offense or offenses to be investigated has consented to the impaneling of the Statewide Grand Jury, or

(2) if one or more of the State's Attorneys having jurisdiction over an offense or offenses to be investigated fails to consent to the impaneling of the Statewide Grand Jury, the Attorney General shall set forth good cause for impaneling the Statewide Grand Jury.

If the Circuit Judge determines that the convening of a Statewide Grand Jury is necessary, he or she shall convene and impanel the Statewide Grand Jury with jurisdiction extending throughout the State to investigate and return indictments:

(a) For violations of any of the following or for any other criminal offense committed in the course of violating any of the following: Article 29D of the Criminal Code of 1961, the Illinois Controlled Substances Act, the Cannabis Control Act, the Methamphetamine Control and Community Protection Act, the Narcotics Profit Forfeiture Act, or the Cannabis and Controlled Substances Tax Act; a streetgang related felony offense; Section 24-2.1, 24-2.2, 24-3, 24-3A, 24-3.1, 24-3.3, 24-3.4, 24-4, or 24-5 or subsection 24-1(a)(4), 24-1(a)(6), 24-1(a)(7), 24-1(a)(9), 24-1(a)(10), or 24-1(c) of the Criminal Code of 1961; or a money laundering offense; provided that the violation or offense involves acts occurring in more than one county of this State; and

(a-5) For violations facilitated by the use of a computer, including the use of the Internet, the World Wide Web, electronic mail, message board, newsgroup, or any other commercial or noncommercial on-line service, of any of the following offenses: indecent solicitation of a child, sexual exploitation of a child, soliciting for a juvenile prostitute, keeping a place of juvenile prostitution, juvenile pimping, or child pornography; and

(a-6) For violations of offenses involving the corruption of a public official, including theft, fraud, extortion or a violation of Article 33 or 33E of the Criminal Code of 1961; and

(b) For the offenses of perjury, subornation of perjury, communicating with jurors and witnesses, and harassment of jurors and witnesses, as they relate to matters before the Statewide Grand Jury.

"Streetgang related" has the meaning ascribed to it in Section 10 of the Illinois Streetgang Terrorism Omnibus Prevention Act.

Upon written application by the Attorney General for the convening of an additional Statewide Grand Jury, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court shall appoint a Circuit Judge from the circuit for which the additional Statewide Grand Jury is sought. The Circuit Judge shall determine the necessity for an additional Statewide Grand Jury in accordance with the provisions of this Section. No more than 2 Statewide Grand Juries may be empaneled at any time.

(Source: P.A. 94-556, eff. 9-11-05.)

(725 ILCS 215/4) (from Ch. 38, par. 1704)

Sec. 4. (a) The presiding judge of the Statewide Grand Jury will receive recommendations from the Attorney General as to the county in which the Grand Jury will sit. Prior to making the recommendations, the Attorney General shall obtain the permission of the local State's Attorney to use his or her county for the site of the Statewide Grand Jury. Upon receiving the Attorney General's recommendations, the presiding judge will choose one of those recommended locations as the site where the Grand Jury shall sit.

Any indictment by a Statewide Grand Jury shall be returned to the Circuit Judge presiding over the Statewide Grand Jury and shall include a finding as to the county or counties in which the alleged offense was committed. Thereupon, the judge shall, by order, designate the county of venue for the purpose of trial. The judge may also, by order, direct the consolidation of an indictment returned by a county grand jury with an indictment returned by the Statewide Grand Jury and set venue for trial.

(b) Venue for purposes of trial for the offense of narcotics racketeering shall be proper in any county where:

(1) Cannabis or a controlled substance which is the basis for the charge of narcotics racketeering was used; acquired; transferred or distributed to, from or through; or any county where any act was performed to further the use; acquisition, transfer or distribution of said cannabis or controlled substance; or

(2) Any money, property, property interest, or any other asset generated by narcotics activities was acquired, used, sold, transferred or distributed to, from or through; or,

(3) Any enterprise interest obtained as a result of narcotics racketeering was acquired, used, transferred or distributed to, from or through, or where any activity was conducted by the enterprise or any conduct to further the interests of such an enterprise.

(c) Venue for purposes of trial for the offense of money laundering shall be proper in any county where any part of a financial transaction in criminally derived property took place, or in any county where any money or monetary interest which is the basis for the offense, was acquired, used, sold, transferred or distributed to, from, or through.

(d) A person who commits the offense of cannabis trafficking or controlled substance trafficking may be tried in any county.

(e) Venue for purposes of trial for any violation of Article 29D of the Criminal Code of 1961 may be in the county in which an act of terrorism occurs, the county in which material support or resources are provided or solicited, the county in which criminal assistance is rendered, or any county in which any act in furtherance of any violation of Article 29D of the Criminal Code of 1961 occurs.

(f) Venue for purposes of trial for any offense involving the corruption of a public official may be in the county in which the offense occurred.

(Source: P.A. 92-854, eff. 12-5-02.)