In a vote that will dra­mat­i­cal­ly change the way mur­der inves­ti­ga­tions are con­duct­ed, the Illinois House has over­whelm­ing­ly approved leg­is­la­tion requir­ing audio-or video­tap­ing of most homi­cide-relat­ed inter­ro­ga­tions and con­fes­sions. The bill, which unan­i­mous­ly passed the Senate last month, now goes to Governor Rod Blagojevich for sig­na­ture into law. The Governor has vowed to sign the leg­is­la­tion. Attorney Thomas Sullivan, who co-chaired the Illinois Commission on Capital Punishment that made more than 80 reform rec­om­men­da­tions after a thor­ough review of the state’s death penal­ty, not­ed, ​“It is extreme­ly sig­nif­i­cant in that it will be a major step for­ward for law enforce­ment and for the entire crim­i­nal jus­tice sys­tem in Illinois.”

(Chicago Tribune, May 10, 2003) See Recent Legislative Activity and Illinois Commission on Capital Punishment.

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