Rep. Mary E. Flowers

Filed: 3/27/2014

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 4080

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 4080 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 5. The Court of Claims Act is amended by changing
5Section 8 as follows:
 
6    (705 ILCS 505/8)   (from Ch. 37, par. 439.8)
7    Sec. 8. Court of Claims jurisdiction; deliberation
8periods. The court shall have exclusive jurisdiction to hear
9and determine the following matters:
10    (a) All claims against the State founded upon any law of
11the State of Illinois or upon any regulation adopted thereunder
12by an executive or administrative officer or agency; provided,
13however, the court shall not have jurisdiction (i) to hear or
14determine claims arising under the Workers' Compensation Act or
15the Workers' Occupational Diseases Act, or claims for expenses
16in civil litigation, or (ii) to review administrative decisions

 

 

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1for which a statute provides that review shall be in the
2circuit or appellate court.
3    (b) All claims against the State founded upon any contract
4entered into with the State of Illinois.
5    (c) All claims against the State for time unjustly served
6in prisons of this State when the person imprisoned received a
7pardon from the governor stating that such pardon is issued on
8the ground of innocence of the crime for which he or she was
9imprisoned or he or she received a certificate of innocence
10from the Circuit Court as provided in Section 2-702 of the Code
11of Civil Procedure; provided, the amount of the award is at the
12discretion of the court; and provided, the court shall make no
13award in excess of the following amounts: for imprisonment of 5
14years or less, not more than $85,350; for imprisonment of 14
15years or less but over 5 years, not more than $170,000; for
16imprisonment of over 14 years, not more than $199,150; and
17provided further, the court shall fix and award reasonable
18attorney's fees for representation before the Court of Claims
19and representation relating to the granting of the certificate
20of innocence or the pardon. The award of attorney's fees shall
21not not to exceed 25% of the award granted for time unjustly
22served in prisons of the State and shall be paid in addition
23to, and not reduce, that award. On or after the effective date
24of this amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly, the court
25shall annually adjust the maximum awards authorized by this
26subsection (c) to reflect the increase, if any, in the Consumer

 

 

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1Price Index For All Urban Consumers for the previous calendar
2year, as determined by the United States Department of Labor,
3except that no annual increment may exceed 5%. For the annual
4adjustments, if the Consumer Price Index decreases during a
5calendar year, there shall be no adjustment for that calendar
6year. The transmission by the Prisoner Review Board or the
7clerk of the circuit court of the information described in
8Section 11(b) to the clerk of the Court of Claims is conclusive
9evidence of the validity of the claim. The changes made by this
10amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly apply to all claims
11pending on or filed on or after the effective date.
12    (d) All claims against the State for damages in cases
13sounding in tort, if a like cause of action would lie against a
14private person or corporation in a civil suit, and all like
15claims sounding in tort against the Medical Center Commission,
16the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, the Board
17of Trustees of Southern Illinois University, the Board of
18Trustees of Chicago State University, the Board of Trustees of
19Eastern Illinois University, the Board of Trustees of Governors
20State University, the Board of Trustees of Illinois State
21University, the Board of Trustees of Northeastern Illinois
22University, the Board of Trustees of Northern Illinois
23University, the Board of Trustees of Western Illinois
24University, or the Board of Trustees of the Illinois
25Mathematics and Science Academy; provided, that an award for
26damages in a case sounding in tort, other than certain cases

 

 

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1involving the operation of a State vehicle described in this
2paragraph, shall not exceed the sum of $100,000 to or for the
3benefit of any claimant. The $100,000 limit prescribed by this
4Section does not apply to an award of damages in any case
5sounding in tort arising out of the operation by a State
6employee of a vehicle owned, leased or controlled by the State.
7The defense that the State or the Medical Center Commission or
8the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois, the Board
9of Trustees of Southern Illinois University, the Board of
10Trustees of Chicago State University, the Board of Trustees of
11Eastern Illinois University, the Board of Trustees of Governors
12State University, the Board of Trustees of Illinois State
13University, the Board of Trustees of Northeastern Illinois
14University, the Board of Trustees of Northern Illinois
15University, the Board of Trustees of Western Illinois
16University, or the Board of Trustees of the Illinois
17Mathematics and Science Academy is not liable for the
18negligence of its officers, agents, and employees in the course
19of their employment is not applicable to the hearing and
20determination of such claims.
21    (e) All claims for recoupment made by the State of Illinois
22against any claimant.
23    (f) All claims pursuant to the Line of Duty Compensation
24Act. A claim under that Act must be heard and determined within
25one year after the application for that claim is filed with the
26Court as provided in that Act.

 

 

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1    (g) All claims filed pursuant to the Crime Victims
2Compensation Act.
3    (h) All claims pursuant to the Illinois National
4Guardsman's Compensation Act. A claim under that Act must be
5heard and determined within one year after the application for
6that claim is filed with the Court as provided in that Act.
7    (i) All claims authorized by subsection (a) of Section
810-55 of the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act for the
9expenses incurred by a party in a contested case on the
10administrative level.
11(Source: P.A. 95-970, eff. 9-22-08; 96-80, eff. 7-27-09.)
 
12    Section 10. The Code of Civil Procedure is amended by
13changing Section 2-702 as follows:
 
14    (735 ILCS 5/2-702)
15    Sec. 2-702. Petition for a certificate of innocence that
16the petitioner was innocent of all offenses for which he or she
17was incarcerated.
18    (a) The General Assembly finds and declares that innocent
19persons who have been wrongly convicted of crimes in Illinois
20and subsequently imprisoned have been frustrated in seeking
21legal redress due to a variety of substantive and technical
22obstacles in the law and that such persons should have an
23available avenue to obtain a finding of innocence so that they
24may obtain relief through a petition in the Court of Claims.

 

 

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1The General Assembly further finds misleading the current legal
2nomenclature which compels an innocent person to seek a pardon
3for being wrongfully incarcerated. It is the intent of the
4General Assembly that the court, in exercising its discretion
5as permitted by law regarding the weight and admissibility of
6evidence submitted pursuant to this Section, shall, in the
7interest of justice, give due consideration to difficulties of
8proof caused by the passage of time, the death or
9unavailability of witnesses, the destruction of evidence or
10other factors not caused by such persons or those acting on
11their behalf.
12    (b) Any person convicted and subsequently imprisoned for
13one or more felonies by the State of Illinois which he or she
14did not commit may, under the conditions hereinafter provided,
15file a petition for certificate of innocence in the circuit
16court of the county in which the person was convicted. The
17petition shall request a certificate of innocence finding that
18the petitioner was innocent of all offenses for which he or she
19was incarcerated.
20    (c) In order to present the claim for certificate of
21innocence of an unjust conviction and imprisonment, the
22petitioner must attach to his or her petition documentation
23demonstrating that:
24        (1) he or she has been convicted of one or more
25    felonies by the State of Illinois and subsequently
26    sentenced to a term of imprisonment, and has served all or

 

 

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1    any part of the sentence; and
2        (2) his or her judgment of conviction was reversed or
3    vacated, and the indictment or information dismissed or, if
4    a new trial was ordered, either he or she was found not
5    guilty at the new trial or he or she was not retried and
6    the indictment or information dismissed; or the statute, or
7    application thereof, on which the indictment or
8    information was based violated the Constitution of the
9    United States or the State of Illinois; and
10        (3) his or her claim is not time barred by the
11    provisions of subsection (i) of this Section.
12    (d) The petition shall state facts in sufficient detail to
13permit the court to find that the petitioner is likely to
14succeed at trial in proving that the petitioner is innocent of
15the offenses charged in the indictment or information or his or
16her acts or omissions charged in the indictment or information
17did not constitute a felony or misdemeanor against the State of
18Illinois, and the petitioner did not by his or her own conduct
19voluntarily cause or bring about his or her conviction. The
20petition shall be verified by the petitioner.
21    (e) A copy of the petition shall be served on the Attorney
22General and the State's Attorney of the county where the
23conviction was had. The Attorney General and the State's
24Attorney of the county where the conviction was had shall have
25the right to intervene as parties.
26    (f) In any hearing seeking a certificate of innocence, the

 

 

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1court may take judicial notice of prior sworn testimony or
2evidence admitted in the criminal proceedings related to the
3convictions which resulted in the alleged wrongful
4incarceration, if the petitioner was either represented by
5counsel at such prior proceedings or the right to counsel was
6knowingly waived.
7    (g) In order to obtain a certificate of innocence the
8petitioner must prove by a preponderance of evidence that:
9        (1) the petitioner was convicted of one or more
10    felonies by the State of Illinois and subsequently
11    sentenced to a term of imprisonment, and has served all or
12    any part of the sentence;
13        (2)(A) the judgment of conviction was reversed or
14    vacated, and the indictment or information dismissed or, if
15    a new trial was ordered, either the petitioner was found
16    not guilty at the new trial or the petitioner was not
17    retried and the indictment or information dismissed; or (B)
18    the statute, or application thereof, on which the
19    indictment or information was based violated the
20    Constitution of the United States or the State of Illinois;
21        (3) the petitioner is innocent of the offenses charged
22    in the indictment or information or his or her acts or
23    omissions charged in the indictment or information did not
24    constitute a felony or misdemeanor against the State; and
25        (4) the petitioner did not voluntarily commit or suborn
26    perjury or fabricate evidence to cause or bring about his

 

 

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1    or her conviction; however, neither a confession nor
2    admission later found to be false constitutes bringing
3    about his or her own conviction under this Code by his or
4    her own conduct voluntarily cause or bring about his or her
5    conviction.
6    (h) If the court finds that the petitioner is entitled to a
7judgment, it shall enter a certificate of innocence finding
8that the petitioner was innocent of all offenses for which he
9or she was incarcerated. Upon entry of the certificate of
10innocence or pardon from the Governor stating that such pardon
11was issued on the ground of innocence of the crime for which he
12or she was imprisoned, (1) the clerk of the court shall
13transmit a copy of the certificate of innocence to the clerk of
14the Court of Claims, together with the claimant's current
15address; and (2) the court shall enter an order expunging the
16record of arrest from the official records of the arresting
17authority and order that the records of the clerk of the
18circuit court and Department of State Police be sealed until
19further order of the court upon good cause shown or as
20otherwise provided herein, and the name of the defendant
21obliterated from the official index requested to be kept by the
22circuit court clerk under Section 16 of the Clerks of Courts
23Act in connection with the arrest and conviction for the
24offense but the order shall not affect any index issued by the
25circuit court clerk before the entry of the order. The court
26shall enter the expungement order regardless of whether the

 

 

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1petitioner has prior criminal convictions.
2    All records sealed by the Department of State Police may be
3disseminated by the Department only as required by law or to
4the arresting authority, the State's Attorney, the court upon a
5later arrest for the same or similar offense, or for the
6purpose of sentencing for any subsequent felony. Upon
7conviction for any subsequent offense, the Department of
8Corrections shall have access to all sealed records of the
9Department pertaining to that individual.
10    Upon entry of the order of expungement, the clerk of the
11circuit court shall promptly mail a copy of the order to the
12person whose records were expunged and sealed.
13    (i) Any person seeking a certificate of innocence under
14this Section based on the dismissal of an indictment or
15information or acquittal that occurred before the effective
16date of this amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly shall
17file his or her petition within 2 years after the effective
18date of this amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly. Any
19person seeking a certificate of innocence under this Section
20based on the dismissal of an indictment or information or
21acquittal that occurred on or after the effective date of this
22amendatory Act of the 95th General Assembly shall file his or
23her petition within 2 years after the dismissal.
24    (j) The decision to grant or deny a certificate of
25innocence shall be binding only with respect to claims filed in
26the Court of Claims and shall not have a res judicata effect on

 

 

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1any other proceedings.
2(Source: P.A. 98-133, eff. 1-1-14.)".