THE ILLINOIZE: Monday Free for All...Another challenge for state's BIPA law...One week without cash bail...Latest library bomb threat closes Illinois State Library (And it needs to stop. Now.)
September 25, 2023
Good morning, Illinois.
Was it tell you that a pop starlet was the most important thing happening in yesterday’s Bears game? Oy.
We’re back at it for another week.
The legislature returns for veto session October 24. That’s in 29 days. Petition filing begins in 63 days. The March primary is in 176 days and the November general election is in 407 days. Tick tock.
There is nothing on Governor Pritzker’s public schedule tomorrow.
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Let’s get to it.
YOUR MONDAY FREE FOR ALL
(note: we’re not responsible for paywalls and restrictions from other news outlets, because good journalism isn’t free)
As state Supreme Court weighs another BIPA lawsuit, lawmakers mull child data privacy framework (Capitol News Illinois)
In Springfield on Thursday, the medical industry went to court.
The Illinois Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a pair of class action suits brought by two suburban nurses, Lucille Mosby and Yana Mazya, who allege their employers violated the state’s Biometric Information Privacy Act, a landmark 2008 law that gives Illinois residents the ability to sue companies that misuse biometric data, such as fingerprints or facial scans.
It’s the same act that formed the basis of several high-profile lawsuits that have led to massive penalties or settlements, such as the $650 million Facebook agreed to pay its Illinois users after it was alleged to have misused biometric data.
The nurses allege that, by requiring the use of fingerprint scanners to open medicine cabinets, Northwestern Medicine, UChicago Medicine and Becton, Dickinson and Co. – the company that makes the medicine cabinets – violated BIPA.
According to court filings, the hospital systems did not collect written releases allowing them to use the fingerprint data, nor did the hospitals provide information about how the biometrics would be stored or eventually destroyed. They also failed to obtain consent to disclose the fingerprint data to third-party vendors that host it.
But lawyers for the defendants argued the use of biometrics to manage medicine falls under an exemption to the law because it counts as, in the words of BIPA, “health care treatment, payment, or operations under the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act.”
The exact wording of the law, and the definition of “under,” faced scrutiny from lawyers on both sides of the case as they argued about the intersection of BIPA and the federal HIPAA law.
“If the defendant is correct, that means the General Assembly decided that as much as 10 percent of the Illinois workforce should have no biometric privacy protection whatsoever, simply by virtue of working in the health care field,” the nurses’ attorney, Jim Zouras, told the court Thursday.
Beyond the specifics of the case, the hospitals’ lawyers also focused on its potential industrywide impact. In their legal brief filed ahead of arguments, they said health care providers would potentially face “catastrophic liability.”
In a February decision against fast food chain White Castle, the Supreme Court ruled that each separate violation of BIPA – meaning every time the company required an employee to sign in using biometric data – represented a separate violation of the law. With penalties of $1,000 or $5,000 per violation included in BIPA, White Castle estimated the ruling could eventually cost the company $17 billion.
That level of liability could be disastrous if applied to the medical community, the defendants argued.
Cook County judges talk about their first week without cash bail. ‘The world is looking at us.’ (Chicago Sun-Times)
Cook County Judge Charles Beach took time to explain why he was ordering the man before him jailed.
“This is your hearing today, so I want you to understand what this hearing is all about,” Beach told the man in his 20’s who was charged with having an AR-15-style rifle, a 45-round magazine and body armor.
Under reforms that went into effect last week, Beach could not set a cash bail. He could either order the man released with conditions, like electronic monitoring, or hold him for trial if he thought the man posed a danger or would not show up for hearings in his case.
Despite glitches in other courthouses, the first week of bail reform in Cook County went relatively smoothly.
But hearings were slower than usual, marked by extensive arguments from prosecutors and defense attorneys as they tested guidelines under the Pretrial Fairness Act, which made Illinois the first state to completely eliminate cash bail.
“The old bond hearings were fast, and they were designed to be fast,” said Beach, a supervising judge of the Pretrial Division who once worked as a private defense attorney.
Now, the law’s backers hope, there will be more time for judges to consider whether a person should be kept behind bars, separated from jobs and families, and not simply because they cannot afford a cash bail.
In another courtroom, Judge Mary Marubio heard the case of a young woman accused of pepper-spraying Chicago police officers during Mexican Independence Day festivities downtown.
The new law requires prosecutors to file a motion if they want someone held before trial. They did not in the woman’s case, so it was up to Marubio to decide what conditions should be placed on her release.
The judge noted the woman had a young child and was employed. A court assessment did not find her to be a risk or a danger. So Marubio released her on the minimum conditions all defendants must now follow: Don’t commit a new crime. and show up for court.
Related: How will the St. Clair County jail be affected by no bail? (Belleville News-Democrat)
Opinion: Let's not lose sight of the big picture on cashless bail (Bloomington Pantagraph)
Illinois State Library forced to evacuate after receiving bomb threat (State Journal-Register)
Employees of the Illinois State Library were forced to evacuate their offices Friday morning after receiving a bomb threat, a spokesperson for the Illinois Secretary of State office confirmed.
Spokesperson Henry Haupt told The State Journal-Register a building swept was conducted after the threat was received around 9:30 a.m. No explosive devices were found by SOS police who issued an all-clear at approximately 11:30 a.m. at which time employees returned to work. No suspects have been named at this point.
The forced evacuation of the 300 S. Second St. building follows a string of bomb threats received by libraries throughout the state.
Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias serves as the state librarian and was a major backer of legislation signed into law by Gov. JB Pritzker that withholds funding for public libraries if they decide to ban books. In August, he said the bomb threats were part of a troubling trend of violence and intimidation.
There has been a rash of bomb threats to libraries around the state in the last few weeks, including libraries we take our toddler to. It is unacceptable and this crap needs to stop.
I’ve said before that no book should be banned, but not every book should be front and center for little kids. But this crap is uncalled for. Republicans and Democrats should condemn these actions.
LAST WEEK ON THEILLINOIZE.COM
Bryant Challenger Appears to Have Illegally Broken Contribution Caps
Some Confusion, Growing Pains on First Day Without Cash Bail
The District Republicans Hope Can Be Their Blueprint for 2024 Pickups
Retired Winnebago County Judge Likely Entering Congressional Race
Opinion: Democrats Folly Blaming Republicans for Governor's Prisoner Review Board Nominees
POLITICAL POTPOURRI
Illinois lawmakers warn that a government shutdown would ripple through the state (WBEZ)
Chicago-area GM, Stellantis parts workers join UAW strike (Crain’s Chicago Business)
Biden administration responds to calls from Pritzker, other leaders, for help in migrant crisis (Capitol News Illinois)
Volunteers say buses of migrants arriving in Chicago at increased rate (Chicago Tribune)
A former Fermilab physicist, U.S. Rep. Bill Foster is worried about AI technology (Chicago Sun-Times)
Illinois is running out of volunteer firefighters: ‘It’s going to become very critical, very shortly’ (Chicago Tribune)
New census data finds 1 in every 5 Chicagoans identifies as Mexican (WBEZ)
Treasurer Melissa Conyears-Ervin acknowledges approaching bank about loan for husband’s landlord (Chicago Tribune)
What drivers can expect when the Kennedy ramp switcheroo starts Monday (Daily Herald)
State’s high court opens new interactive learning center (Capitol News Illinois)
Washington Mayor Gary Manier announces candidacy for upcoming 53rd Illinois State Senate race (Shaw Media)
DeKalb mayor announces 2024 election bid for Illinois District 76 House of Representatives (Shaw Media)
Editorial: Illinois inspired the idea behind Biden’s green jobs corps. Now, Illinois needs to get on board. (Chicago Sun-Times)
Editorial: ‘Yurt’ cities run by private security, possibly coming to a neighborhood near you. What could go wrong? (Chicago Tribune)
Opinion: Illinois needs more revenue to keep a good thing going (Champaign News-Gazette)
Opinion: eaching civics to students can also educate their parents (Chicago Tribune)
Opinion: To gauge intent and consequence, wade into legislative language (Shaw Media)
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