Letters: Lawmakers should pass the FAIR Act to ensure all Illinoisans get a fair defense in court

Chicago Tribune

20-05-2025

Under the Sixth Amendment of the United State Constitution, all accused indigent people are guaranteed the right to effective legal representation in a court of law. Unfortunately, that is not happening in Illinois.
Illinois has not significantly updated its public defense structure since 1949. The result is that Illinois is an outlier in the United States and is one of only a handful of states with no statewide body to ensure that those who cannot afford an attorney receive effective representation.
Additionally, with 102 counties in Illinois, there are some counties that have no public defenders at all. About 60% of Illinois counties have no government office of public defense and instead contract with private attorneys, often on a part-time basis. Some counties may share a public defender or a judge may appoint any lawyer to represent a client even if that lawyer has no experience in public defense. The result of this lack of effective legal representation can lead to unnecessary jail admissions or prison sentences, which then damage individuals, families and communities through incarceration and lost wages.
The Funded Advocacy & Independent Representation (FAIR) Act (HB3363) is currently in the Illinois Senate. Under the FAIR Act, an independent State Public Defender Commission and a state public defender position would be created. The commission would provide resources to county public defender offices, establish training programs and advocate for court system funding. The commission would determine metrics regarding public defender offices, caseloads, staffing and resources. It also would be able to offer resources to under-resourced counties in Illinois.
Passing the FAIR Act would put into law the necessary structural changes that Illinois residents need in order to obtain fair and effective public defense representation. The passage of the FAIR Act would modernize the public defense system and offer to all people the constitutional protection and the vigorous defense we all should expect.
When I was a child, my father believed that we only get the justice we can afford. That needs to change in Illinois now.A recent news article and opinion piece in the Tribune have an important connection. The Tribune Editorial Board enthused about successes at O'Hare International Airport ('First job for new aviation commissioner? Don't mess up Chicago's O'Hare Airport,' May 11), and Ron Grossman gave a fascinating look at Chicago Union Station's storied past ('100 years ago, the first trains pulled into Union Station,' May 11).
Together, this coverage highlights the best possible future for Chicago transportation: connecting these two assets via a quick train ride. The key is bringing intercity and regional rail passengers within walking distance of O'Hare's ticket counters. The best transit systems in the world provide this.
Imagine being able to travel conveniently between O'Hare and destinations throughout the region by intercity train. This would make O'Hare an even more appealing hub airport. It would allow ORD to focus on more profitable long-distance flights instead of connectors, while saving fuel and innumerable hours simply getting travelers to and from the airport.
It would also fulfill the great potential of Union Station, now 100 years young and looking forward to a bright future as the hub of a magnificent Midwest rail system and future home of high-speed rail.
We hope Michael McMurray, Chicago's new commissioner of aviation, sees this potential to revolutionize Chicago transit with a Union Station-O'Hare connection.
We're pushing for five straightforward fixes at Union Station to better connect it to the region while increasing its capacity tenfold: a new concourse to make it easier to find your train, direct access to southern platforms from above, through-running trains on Amtrak and Metra to O'Hare, a shift from diesel to electric trains and better connections between Union Station and other transit assets, especially the Ogilvie Transportation Center and the Blue Line.
The key is investment, and the looming fiscal cliff for transit presents an opportunity. Let's invest in a comprehensive railway program that connects O'Hare and Union Station as part of a network of fast, frequent, affordable trains and transit that serve our entire state and beyond.Chicago has become a thriving hub for life sciences innovation. Through our elected officials' foresight and planning and fueled by world-class universities, tech incubators and a growing ecosystem of venture-backed startups, Chicago is an epicenter of biotech and digital health.
And essential to the innovation and breakthroughs emerging from the Chicago life sciences industry is artificial intelligence, a powerful tool whose promise we're only beginning to comprehend.
AI is transforming the pace and precision of life sciences research in Chicago (and everywhere else). Machine learning is helping startups model new innovations to enhance clinical trials, power personalized medicine tailored to each patient's biology and achieve predictive diagnostics with unthinkable accuracy.
It goes without saying that protecting the development of AI and minimizing obstacles to its continued use is essential for a hub such as Chicago.
Lawmakers in Springfield are considering a bill, HB3506, to regulate companies that are utilizing AI, proposing technical reporting and compliance obligations that would prove costly and burdensome. As well intentioned as the policy may be, it would as written have a chilling effect on AI innovation by entangling early-stage life sciences startups in red tape before their innovations ever reach a patient or become commercially viable.
Before finalizing any bill, Illinois policymakers should thoughtfully engage the community of talented life sciences entrepreneurs here in Chicago to better understand how AI functions in the life sciences. Regulation of this emerging industry is warranted but must be narrowed to address bad actors without handcuffing innovation. Proposed regulations that couple burdensome reporting requirements with overreaching policies risk imposing unsustainable costs on small startups — draining limited resources and possibly forcing promising startups to close before they can get off the ground.
Illinois is poised to be a major contender in the next wave of medical innovation, so instead of fast-tracking legislation around a complex and nuanced issue such as artificial intelligence, legislators should take a measured and forward-looking approach.
Chicago's life sciences and tech ecosystems are thriving, and we've only scratched the surface on the promise of AI to transform health care. Let's make sure Chicago is at the center of that transformation, supported by smart policy that fosters innovation at every turn.When my business was strapped for cash and traditional lending wasn't an option, I had to take a loan from a quick cash lender so my business could survive. But after taking out that financing, I realized that the lender lacked transparency when I saw how high the interest rate really was.
This traps small business owners in a vicious debt cycle in which all they can afford to do is make the minimum loan payment, and sometimes, they can't even afford that. While I'm paying off my loan now, other small business owners are still struggling. There's no road map for navigating this debt while keeping cash flow steady.
That's why I'm urging the Illinois legislature to support any legislation that would require noncommercial lenders to disclose their annual percentage rate, or APR. This is the only metric that enables borrowers to make apples-to-apples comparisons between different financing products. Small businesses need to be able to make informed decisions so they can access true capital, not high-interest traps that keep us struggling.I'm wondering why Jasmine Paolini, the first Italian to win the Italian Open in 40 years, got the 'Shorts' spot in the Sunday Sports section, while the match between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner (who lost) got the nice, quarter page article the next day?
Oh yeah. Women's sports. Silly me.