SB0299 would create the Capital Crimes Litigation Act of 2025 and substantially rebuild Illinois’ capital punishment framework. The bill requires immediate appointment of counsel for indigent defendants charged in death-eligible cases unless the prosecutor has already stated the death penalty will not be sought, and it sets detailed procedures for compensation, litigation budgets, expert services, sealed filings, and ex parte review in capital cases. It also creates a new Capital Litigation Trust Fund to finance prosecution, defense, and post-conviction work in capital cases, replacing the existing Death Penalty Abolition Fund structure.
The bill would also amend the Unified Code of Corrections to reinstate the death penalty in limited categories of first-degree murder, specifically for murders of certain public safety and correctional personnel, including peace officers, firefighters, EMTs, ambulance drivers, other first responders, and Department of Corrections or similar local correctional employees, when the victim was killed in the line of duty, to prevent official duties, or in retaliation for them, and the defendant knew or should have known the victim’s status. It makes conforming changes to the Freedom of Information Act, the Code of Criminal Procedure of 1963, and the State Appellate Defender Act, including exemptions for capital-case defense budgets and compensation petitions from FOIA until the case concludes.
If enacted, SB0299 would repeal Illinois’ current abolition framework in part and restore a death-penalty sentencing option for a narrow set of aggravated murders involving specified public employees. It would also create new statutory procedures for capital-case representation, funding, and court oversight, shifting how trial counsel, experts, investigators, and post-conviction services are paid and administered. The bill would affect indigent defendants, public defenders, private court-appointed defense attorneys, prosecutors, the State Appellate Defender, the State’s Attorneys Appellate Prosecutor, the Attorney General, Cook County officials, and the State Treasurer.
The bill’s caption and structure indicate a strong pro-death-penalty policy position, and the text is designed to reestablish capital punishment in Illinois after abolition. No committee transcripts or recorded votes were provided, so there is no documented legislative debate or vote history to gauge broader support or opposition. Based on the bill’s subject matter, it is likely to be politically divisive, but the available record does not show measured sentiment from committee discussion.
The main point of contention is the reinstatement of the death penalty itself, particularly after Illinois abolished it in 2011. Supporters would likely emphasize punishment for murders of police, firefighters, EMTs, correctional staff, and other protected public servants, while opponents would likely object to reviving capital punishment on moral, fiscal, and wrongful-conviction grounds. Additional likely disputes include the bill’s extensive new funding and secrecy provisions, the use of sealed ex parte budget and compensation proceedings, and the administrative burden placed on courts, the State Treasurer, and county systems, especially in Cook County.