“My husband has a changed heart,” said Denise Bartik, who stood with a crowd of other advocates outside Governor J.B. Pritzker’s office in downtown Chicago on Thursday to call for compassion and a reinstatement of parole in Illinois. Jeff Bartik, her husband, has served 48 years in state prisons for murder. His clemency petition was submitted to the governor three years ago. It includes letters of support from members of the victim’s family. Advocates say the petition is one of hundreds that sit on the governor’s desk with no reply.
Members of Project Sound Off joined others from Parole Illinois and Citizens for Elder Parole at Thursday’s press conference, urging the governor and Illinois legislature to pass HB2764, which supports “earned reentry.” The bill establishes a process for anyone who has served at least 20 years of incarceration to have their case heard by the Illinois Prisoner Review Board. If an individual can prove they have turned their life around, they could be released on parole. About 3,900 people in Illinois prisons could be eligible for earned reentry within the first three years of implementation, according to an Illinois Sentencing Policy Advisory Council study.
Advocates chose September 17, the day the U.S. Constitution was signed in 1787, to make their appeal. Speakers cited the Illinois Constitution, Article 1, Section 11, which states the purpose of imprisonment is “restoring the offender to useful citizenship.”…