Following the repeal of the death penal­ty in Illinois, some state pros­e­cu­tors and judges have point­ed to poten­tial ben­e­fits to the crim­i­nal jus­tice sys­tem. Kane County State’s Attorney Joe McMahon recent­ly said that abol­ish­ing the death penal­ty meant that mur­der tri­als in the coun­ty could come to a con­clu­sion more quicly. McMahon said, ​“To the extent that we can bring these cas­es to res­o­lu­tion soon­er, and help the fam­i­lies of the vic­tims get some mea­sure of clo­sure and allow the heal­ing process to begin soon­er, [it] will be help­ful.” Judge Keith Brown, chief judge of the 16th Judicial Circuit, said that the lack of the death penal­ty will ease some of the bur­den of allo­cat­ing addi­tion­al resources to mur­der tri­als. Judge Brown not­ed that, ​“pros­e­cut­ing mur­ders should become less time con­sum­ing and less expen­sive, as the coun­ty and the state will no longer need to pay addi­tion­al attorney’s fees for defen­dants, pay to bring in addi­tion­al juries or pay staff and court costs for extended trials.”

(J. Bilyk, ​“Death penal­ty abo­li­tion will have impact,” Kane County Chronicle, March 10, 2011). See Costs, Victims and New Voices.

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