State of Illinois
91st General Assembly
Legislation

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91_HB0790

 
                                               LRB9104579RCks

 1        AN ACT to amend the Statewide Grand Jury Act by  changing
 2    Sections 2 and 3.

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

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

 7        (725 ILCS 215/2) (from Ch. 38, par. 1702)
 8        Sec.  2.   (a)  County grand juries and State's Attorneys
 9    have  always  had  and  shall  continue   to   have   primary
10    responsibility  for investigating, indicting, and prosecuting
11    persons who  violate  the  criminal  laws  of  the  State  of
12    Illinois.    However,   in   recent  years  certain  criminal
13    enterprises  have  developed  that   require   investigation,
14    indictment,  and  prosecution  on  a statewide or multicounty
15    level. These enterprises exist as a result of the  allure  of
16    profitability present in narcotic activity, the unlawful sale
17    and transfer of firearms, and streetgang related felonies. In
18    order  to  weaken  or eliminate these enterprises, the profit
19    must be removed. State statutes  exist  that  can  accomplish
20    that  goal.   Among them are the offense of money laundering,
21    the Cannabis and Controlled Substances Tax Act, the Narcotics
22    Profit Forfeiture Act,  and  gunrunning.   Local  prosecutors
23    need  investigative  personnel  and  specialized  training to
24    attack  and  eliminate  these  profits.  In  light   of   the
25    transitory  and  complex  nature  of conduct that constitutes
26    these  criminal  activities,  the   many   diverse   property
27    interests  that  may  be acquired directly or indirectly as a
28    result of these criminal activities, and the many places that
29    illegally obtained property may be located, it is the purpose
30    of this Act to create a limited, multicounty Statewide  Grand
31    Jury  with  authority  to investigate, indict, and prosecute:
 
                            -2-                LRB9104579RCks
 1    narcotic  activity,   including   cannabis   and   controlled
 2    substance    trafficking,   narcotics   racketeering,   money
 3    laundering, and violations of  the  Cannabis  and  Controlled
 4    Substances  Tax  Act;  the  unlawful  sale  and  transfer  of
 5    firearms; gunrunning; and streetgang related felonies.
 6        (b)  A Statewide Grand Jury may also investigate, indict,
 7    and prosecute violations facilitated by the use of a computer
 8    of any of  the following offenses: indecent solicitation of a
 9    child,  sexual  exploitation  of  a  child,  soliciting for a
10    juvenile   prostitute,   keeping   a   place   of    juvenile
11    prostitution, juvenile pimping, or child pornography.
12    (Source: P.A. 88-677, eff. 12-15-94; 89-8, eff. 3-21-95.)

13        (725 ILCS 215/3) (from Ch. 38, par. 1703)
14        Sec.  3.   Written  application  for the appointment of a
15    Circuit Judge to convene and preside over a  Statewide  Grand
16    Jury, with jurisdiction extending throughout the State, shall
17    be made to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.  Upon such
18    written  application,  the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court
19    shall appoint a Circuit Judge  from  the  circuit  where  the
20    Statewide  Grand  Jury  is  being  sought to be convened, who
21    shall make a determination that the convening of a  Statewide
22    Grand Jury is necessary.
23        In such application the Attorney General shall state that
24    the  convening of a Statewide Grand Jury is necessary because
25    of an alleged offense or offenses set forth in  this  Section
26    involving  more  than one county of the State and identifying
27    any such offense alleged; and
28             (a)  that he or she believes  that  the  grand  jury
29        function  for  the  investigation  and  indictment of the
30        offense or offenses cannot effectively be performed by  a
31        county  grand  jury  together  with  the reasons for such
32        belief, and
33             (b) (1)  that    each    State's    Attorney    with
 
                            -3-                LRB9104579RCks
 1             jurisdiction over  an  offense  or  offenses  to  be
 2             investigated  has consented to the impaneling of the
 3             Statewide Grand Jury, or
 4                  (2)  if one or more of  the  State's  Attorneys
 5             having  jurisdiction  over an offense or offenses to
 6             be investigated fails to consent to  the  impaneling
 7             of  the  Statewide  Grand Jury, the Attorney General
 8             shall  set  forth  good  cause  for  impaneling  the
 9             Statewide Grand Jury.
10        If the Circuit Judge determines that the convening  of  a
11    Statewide  Grand  Jury  is necessary, he or she shall convene
12    and  impanel  the  Statewide  Grand  Jury  with  jurisdiction
13    extending throughout the  State  to  investigate  and  return
14    indictments:
15             (a)  For  violations  of any of the following or for
16        any other criminal offense committed  in  the  course  of
17        violating  any  of the following: the Illinois Controlled
18        Substances Act, the Cannabis Control Act,  the  Narcotics
19        Profit  Forfeiture  Act,  or  the Cannabis and Controlled
20        Substances Tax Act; a streetgang related felony  offense;
21        Section  24-2.1,  24-2.2,  24-3,  24-3A,  24-3.1, 24-3.3,
22        24-3.4,  24-4,  or   24-5   or   subsection   24-1(a)(4),
23        24-1(a)(6),   24-1(a)(7),   24-1(a)(9),  24-1(a)(10),  or
24        24-1(c)  of  the  Criminal  Code  of  1961;  or  a  money
25        laundering  offense;  provided  that  the  violation   or
26        offense  involves  acts occurring in more than one county
27        of this State; and
28             (a-5)  For violations facilitated by the  use  of  a
29        computer,  including  the  use of the Internet, the World
30        Wide Web, electronic mail, message board,  newsgroup,  or
31        any other commercial or noncommercial on-line service, of
32        any  of the following offenses:  indecent solicitation of
33        a child, sexual exploitation of a child, soliciting for a
34        juvenile  prostitute,  keeping  a   place   of   juvenile
 
                            -4-                LRB9104579RCks
 1        prostitution, juvenile pimping, or child pornography; and
 2        
 3             (b)  For  the  offenses  of  perjury, subornation of
 4        perjury, communicating with  jurors  and  witnesses,  and
 5        harassment  of  jurors  and  witnesses, as they relate to
 6        matters before the Statewide Grand Jury.
 7        "Streetgang related" has the meaning ascribed  to  it  in
 8    Section  10  of  the  Illinois  Streetgang  Terrorism Omnibus
 9    Prevention Act.
10        Upon written application by the Attorney General for  the
11    convening  of  an  additional Statewide Grand Jury, the Chief
12    Justice of the Supreme Court shall appoint  a  Circuit  Judge
13    from  the  circuit  for  which the additional Statewide Grand
14    Jury is  sought.   The  Circuit  Judge  shall  determine  the
15    necessity   for   an   additional  Statewide  Grand  Jury  in
16    accordance with the provisions of this Section.  No more than
17    2 Statewide Grand Juries may be empaneled at any time.
18    (Source: P.A. 88-677,  eff.  12-15-94;  89-8,  eff.  3-21-95;
19    89-688, eff. 6-1-97.)

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