Cook County State's Attorney Eileen Burke says murder of CTA janitor proof that electronic monitoring system is broken
Cook County State's Attorney Eileen Burke, who has been critical of the county's electronic monitoring system, said the recent murder of a CTA janitor at a Green Line station is the latest example that the system is broken.
"Electronic monitoring is not monitoring at all right now," Burke said.
Chevazz Campbell, the man charged with killing CTA janitor Justin Mobley earlier this month at the Damen stop on the Green Line, was wearing a court-ordered ankle monitor at the time for a recent retail theft case.
Cook County prosecutors have said Campbell had repeatedly broken curfew with his ankle monitor before the attack, and was out of compliance for hours at a time.
Burke's office asked for him to be brought in, but it never happened. Burke said it's proof the current electronic monitoring system is broken.
The Chief Judge's office, which runs the county's electronic monitoring system, said they enforced the law by issuing warrants for Campbell's violations, but said it was law enforcement which failed to enforce those warrants.
Burke wants state law changed.
"Violent criminals shouldn't be on electronic monitoring; when a warrant is issued, that it is actually executed upon; and that they don't get day-for-day credit for time they spent in their home," she said.
Speaking at the Lincoln Forum at the Union League Club of Chicago, Burke was asked when she will seek that change in legislation from the Illinois General Assembly.
"We are working daily with our legislative committee, and how we are going to pose these, but it's running into a brick wall in the legislature," she said.
Campbell has a lengthy criminal history, including a three-year sentence for stabbing another person in 2018. As for why he wasn't picked up when new warrants were issued for his recent electronic monitoring violations, the sheriff's office prioritizes warrants for violent crimes. Before he allegedly killed Mobley, Cambpell was on electronic monitoring for a retail theft charge, a non-violent crime.
Burke was also asked Wednesday why her office has not filed criminal charges against any federal agents for their actions during Operation Midway Blitz, as some high-profile figures have pushed for – including former Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Judge Ruben Castillo, who chairs the Illinois Accountability Commission, which was tasked by the governor with investigating the feds' conduct during that immigration crackdown.
"You have to be okay with people not being happy with your decision," Burke said. "I will never make decisions in this office based on who is screaming the loudest. I will only make decisions in this office based on the law and the facts that are presented to me."
