SPRINGFIELD – Senate President John Cullerton has appointed State Senator Scott Bennett (D-Champaign) as the new chairman of the Senate Criminal Law Committee.

A graduate of Illinois State University and University of Illinois Law School, Bennett served as a Champaign County Assistant State’s Attorney before being appointed to the State Senate in 2015.

Since arriving in the Senate, Bennett has used his experiences as a prosecutor to push for legislation to assist survivors of sexual assault. He has also led the charge to eliminate statute of limitations on sexual crimes against children.

“I look forward to bringing my experience and expertise as an attorney and former prosecutor to this challenging new role as leader of the Senate Criminal Law Committee,” Bennett said. “You have my commitment that I will fight for policies that ensure safety and justice for families and communities across the state.”

The criminal law committee hears proposed legislation devoted to improving the quality, fairness and effectiveness of the criminal justice system in the state. Last year, the committee passed measures advancing criminal justice reform, curbing gun violence and protecting victims.

Bennett has been serving on the committee for the past three years and is excited about the opportunity to steer and promote fair and essential criminal law policies.

“We’re going to have a lot of critical criminal law bills coming along this year and I think it’s important that we do something that is unusual in Springfield,” Bennett said. “We need to begin to properly study and assess legislation and actually look to experts to see how the laws we pass will affect those in courthouses across Illinois.”

Bennett will continue to serve as vice chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee and will also sit on appropriations, gaming, higher education and labor committees.

CHAMPAIGN – In order to address the growing social and financial costs of jailing those who await trial, State Senator Scott Bennett will join a commission to investigate possible pretrial reforms in the state’s criminal justice system.

The Champaign Democrat has been appointed to the Illinois Supreme Court’s Pretrial Practices Commission to help conduct a redesign of the system in place to deal with individuals from the time they're arrested until their case is resolved.

“The human and financial costs of pretrial detention are higher than I think we realize,” Bennett said “We must develop the most sensible practices possible to ensure that pretrial detention is serving both the ends of justice and the public interest.”

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CHAMPAIGN – State Senator Scott Bennett (D-Campaign) is excited to announce that the Illinois Arts Council awarded the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign a grant of $16,200 for broadcast operations at WILL radio and television.

Illinois Public Media will use the grant to serve communities in Central Illinois with quality, commercial-free educational programming.

“I am thrilled that this grant will allow Illinois Public Media to continue to break new grounds and bring news every day to families in Central Illinois,” Bennett said. “WILL has always done an excellent job keeping citizens informed and engaged with the issues that matter in our communities. Their broadcasting consistently provides knowledge for political action, fosters talk that leads to solutions and inspires cultural and local engagement.”

CHAMPAIGN – To help people throughout his district reduce their utility bills, State Senator Scott Bennett (D-Champaign) will be hosting a free workshop with the Citizens Utility Board (CUB).

Bennett will be hosting workshops in Urbana and Danville on Wednesday, January 17. The first workshop will be held at Urbana Public Library (210 W. Green St. Urbana) from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and the second workshop of the day will be at Danville Public Library from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.

“These workshops will be helpful to anyone the community who is interested in learning how to reduce their utility bills,” Bennett said.

Attendees are encouraged to bring their gas, electric and phone bills for a free individual consultation with one of CUB’s experts who will provide information on spotting billing errors and incentives designed to help people improve energy efficiency.

To register for the CUB workshop, call (217) 355-5252 or fill out the online registration at www.senatorbennett.com.

CUB Workshop in Urbana:
Date: Wednesday, January 17
Time: 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Location: Urbana Free Library (210 West Green St., Urbana, IL 61801)

CUB Workshop in Danville:
Date: Wednesday, January 17
Time: 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Location: Danville Public Library (319 N. Vermillion St., Danville, IL 61832)