The Pretrial Fairness Act, part of the broader SAFE-T Act, took effect on September 18, 2023 and made Illinois the first state in the country to eliminate cash bail entirely. Money no longer determines who waits at home versus in custody pending trial.
The Act replaced cash bond with a detention-hearing system. Most defendants are released on conditions instead of bond. On a defined list of more serious charges (forcible felonies, certain firearm offenses, stalking, domestic battery with prior history, sex offenses requiring registration, and DUIs involving great bodily harm), the state can file a Petition to Detain. The state must then prove, by clear and convincing evidence, both that the defendant committed the offense and that the defendant poses a real and present threat or a high willful flight risk.
Detention hearings typically occur within 24 to 48 hours of arrest. Having counsel at that hearing — not days later — is the single biggest variable under the defendant's control.