Eric Stock / WGLT
McLean County prosecutors call it an unprecedented time in their office.
They have tried 10 murder defendants in less than two years. The last nine defendants were convicted. McLean County State s Attorney Don Knapp said he hopes the convictions have a chilling effect on crime in Bloomington-Normal.
“If people haven’t figured out what happens to folks that want to use violence and usually illegal guns to settle disputes, I don’t know how much plainer we can make it,” Knapp said.
Knapp called a news conference Tuesday and assembled his prosecutors who tried those cases and local police who investigated the cases to detail how they have managed the multitude of high-profile murders.
Bloomington Police
McLean County law enforcement agencies reported an average amount of gun violence in 2020. That’s a significant deviation from the national picture and the numbers in some other central Illinois communities.
Bloomington Police said there were 27 shooting incidents last year. The five-year average is 28. The three-year average is 25. Police in Normal recorded 30 gun cases in 2020 compared with 31 in 2019. Shots fired incidents dropped slightly from 14 to nine in Normal. The McLean County Sheriff’s Department reported just one gun case, though such things are typically rare in rural areas of the county, said Sheriff Jon Sandage.
NPD reported no clear trend in gun cases, though Chief Rick Bleichner said the pandemic did slow the pace of cases through the courts, leaving a higher number unresolved than usual.
Eric Stock / WGLT
Law enforcement officials and prosecutors said they feel blindsided by a massive criminal justice reform bill introduced by the Black Democratic Caucus in the Illinois House, with police saying they are shocked and surprised at the timing and sweeping scope of the measure. After what had happened in Minneapolis, we were certainly very vocal as law enforcement leaders about wanting to look at change and be involved in change, said Normal Police Chief Rick Bleichner.
Bleichner said police advocates were not an equal player in developing the package. On Friday, the bill dropped without a lot of previous discussion. McLean County State s Attorney Don Knapp said a lack of debate on legislation is a good way to create unintended consequences.