Bill Text: IL HB4657 | 2025-2026 | 104th General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: Amends the Unified Code of Corrections concerning executive clemency. Provides that, upon request, the Department of Corrections shall provide disciplinary records of the petitioner to the State's Attorney of the county in which the conviction had been entered. Provides that any State's Attorney provided disciplinary records of a petitioner is prohibited from disseminating the disciplinary records or their contents. Provides that the records and the information contained in the records may only be disclosed as part of a response to a petition for clemency or during a related clemency hearing. Provides that upon an application for compassionate release, the Department of Corrections shall provide the State's Attorney serving the county in which the applying petitioner's conviction was entered with a copy of the petitioner's complete disciplinary files and complete medical file and any evaluations, whether by prison medical staff or outside medical providers, which form the basis for the petitioner's application for compassionate release. Provides that the records shall remain in the exclusive possession of the State's Attorney and shall not be disclosed other than in hearings on compassionate release or written responses to the petitioner's compassionate release petition.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 10)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2026-04-01 - Added Co-Sponsor Rep. Dan Ugaste [HB4657 Detail]

Download: Illinois-2025-HB4657-Introduced.html

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104TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY State of Illinois 2025 and 2026HB4657 Introduced , by Rep. Jennifer Sanalitro SYNOPSIS AS INTRODUCED:
730 ILCS 5/3-3-13 from Ch. 38, par. 1003-3-13
730 ILCS 5/3-3-14
Amends the Unified Code of Corrections concerning executive clemency. Provides that, upon request, the Department of Corrections shall provide disciplinary records of the petitioner to the State's Attorney of the county in which the conviction had been entered. Provides that any State's Attorney provided disciplinary records of a petitioner is prohibited from disseminating the disciplinary records or their contents. Provides that the records and the information contained in the records may only be disclosed as part of a response to a petition for clemency or during a related clemency hearing. Provides that upon an application for compassionate release, the Department of Corrections shall provide the State's Attorney serving the county in which the applying petitioner's conviction was entered with a copy of the petitioner's complete disciplinary files and complete medical file and any evaluations, whether by prison medical staff or outside medical providers, which form the basis for the petitioner's application for compassionate release. Provides that the records shall remain in the exclusive possession of the State's Attorney and shall not be disclosed other than in hearings on compassionate release or written responses to the petitioner's compassionate release petition.
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A BILL FOR
HB4657 LRB104 17402 RLC 30827 b
AN ACT concerning criminal law.
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,
represented in the General Assembly:
Section 5. The Unified Code of Corrections is amended by
changing Sections 3-3-13 and 3-3-14 as follows:
(730 ILCS 5/3-3-13) (from Ch. 38, par. 1003-3-13)
Sec. 3-3-13. Procedure for executive clemency.
(a) Petitions seeking pardon, commutation, or reprieve
shall be addressed to the Governor and filed with the Prisoner
Review Board. The petition shall be in writing and signed by
the person under conviction or by a person on his behalf. It
shall contain a brief history of the case, the reasons for
seeking executive clemency, and other relevant information the
Board may require.
(a-5) After a petition has been denied by the Governor,
the Board may not accept a repeat petition for executive
clemency for the same person until one full year has elapsed
from the date of the denial. The Chairman of the Board may
waive the one-year requirement if the petitioner offers in
writing new information that was unavailable to the petitioner
at the time of the filing of the prior petition and which the
Chairman determines to be significant. The Chairman also may
waive the one-year waiting period if the petitioner can show

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that a change in circumstances of a compelling humanitarian
nature has arisen since the denial of the prior petition.
(b) Notice of the proposed application shall be given by
the Board to the committing court and the state's attorney of
the county where the conviction was had. Upon request, the
Department of Corrections shall provide disciplinary records
of the petitioner to the State's Attorney of the county in
which the conviction had been entered. Any State's Attorney
provided disciplinary records of a petitioner is prohibited
from disseminating the disciplinary records or their contents.
The records and the information contained in the records may
only be disclosed as part of a response to a petition for
clemency or during a related clemency hearing.
(b-5) Victims registered with the Board shall receive
reasonable written notice not less than 30 days prior to the
executive clemency hearing date. The victim has the right to
submit a victim statement, in support or opposition, to the
Prisoner Review Board for consideration at an executive
clemency hearing as provided in subsection (c) of this
Section. Victim statements provided to the Board shall be
confidential and privileged, including any statements received
prior to the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 101st
General Assembly, except if the statement was an oral
statement made by the victim at a hearing open to the public.
(c) The Board shall, upon due notice, give a hearing to
each application, allowing representation by counsel, if

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desired, after which it shall confidentially advise the
Governor by a written report of its recommendations which
shall be determined by majority vote. The written report to
the Governor shall be confidential and privileged, including
any reports made prior to the effective date of this
amendatory Act of the 101st General Assembly. The Board shall
meet to consider such petitions no less than 4 times each year.
(d) The Governor shall decide each application and
communicate his decision to the Board which shall notify the
petitioner.
In the event a petitioner who has been convicted of a Class
X felony is granted a release, after the Governor has
communicated such decision to the Board, the Board shall give
written notice to the Sheriff of the county from which the
offender was sentenced if such sheriff has requested that such
notice be given on a continuing basis. In cases where arrest of
the offender or the commission of the offense took place in any
municipality with a population of more than 10,000 persons,
the Board shall also give written notice to the proper law
enforcement agency for said municipality which has requested
notice on a continuing basis.
(e) Nothing in this Section shall be construed to limit
the power of the Governor under the constitution to grant a
reprieve, commutation of sentence, or pardon.
(Source: P.A. 103-51, eff. 1-1-24; 104-11, eff. 6-20-25.)

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(730 ILCS 5/3-3-14)
Sec. 3-3-14. Procedure for medical release.
(a) Definitions.
(1) As used in this Section, "medically incapacitated"
means that a petitioner has any diagnosable medical
condition, including dementia and severe, permanent
medical or cognitive disability, that prevents the
petitioner from completing more than one activity of daily
living without assistance or that incapacitates the
petitioner to the extent that institutional confinement
does not offer additional restrictions, and that the
condition is unlikely to improve noticeably in the future.
(2) As used in this Section, "terminal illness" means
a condition that satisfies all of the following criteria:
(i) the condition is irreversible and incurable;
and
(ii) in accordance with medical standards and a
reasonable degree of medical certainty, based on an
individual assessment of the petitioner, the condition
is likely to cause death to the petitioner within 18
months.
(b) The Prisoner Review Board shall consider an
application for compassionate release on behalf of any
petitioner who meets any of the following:
(1) is suffering from a terminal illness; or
(2) has been diagnosed with a condition that will

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result in medical incapacity within the next 6 months; or
(3) has become medically incapacitated subsequent to
sentencing due to illness or injury.
(c) Initial application.
(1) An initial application for medical release may be
filed with the Prisoner Review Board by the petitioner, a
prison official, a medical professional who has treated or
diagnosed the petitioner, or the petitioner's spouse,
parent, guardian, grandparent, aunt or uncle, sibling,
child over the age of eighteen years, or attorney. If the
initial application is made by someone other than the
petitioner, the petitioner, or if the petitioner is
medically unable to consent, the guardian or family member
designated to represent the petitioner's interests must
consent to the application at the time of the
institutional hearing.
(2) Application materials shall be maintained on the
Prisoner Review Board's website and the Department of
Corrections' website and maintained in a clearly visible
place within the law library and the infirmary of every
penal institution and facility operated by the Department
of Corrections.
(3) The initial application need not be notarized, can
be sent via email or facsimile, and must contain the
following information:
(i) the petitioner's name and Illinois Department

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of Corrections number;
(ii) the petitioner's diagnosis;
(iii) a statement that the petitioner meets one of
the following diagnostic criteria:
(A) the petitioner is suffering from a
terminal illness;
(B) the petitioner has been diagnosed with a
condition that will result in medical incapacity
within the next 6 months; or
(C) the petitioner has become medically
incapacitated subsequent to sentencing due to
illness or injury.
(3.5) The Prisoner Review Board shall place no
additional restrictions, limitations, or requirements on
applications from petitioners.
(4) Upon receiving the petitioner's initial
application, the Board shall order the Department of
Corrections to have a physician or nurse practitioner
evaluate the petitioner and create a written evaluation
within ten days of the Board's order. The evaluation shall
include but need not be limited to:
(i) a concise statement of the petitioner medical
diagnosis, including prognosis, likelihood of
recovery, and primary symptoms, to include
incapacitation; and
(ii) a statement confirming or denying that the

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petitioner meets one of the criteria stated in
subsection (b) of this Section.
(5) Upon a determination that the petitioner is
eligible for a hearing, the Prisoner Review Board shall:
(i) provide public notice of the petitioner's
name, docket number, counsel, and hearing date; and
(ii) provide a copy of the evaluation and any
medical records provided by the Department of
Corrections to the petitioner or the petitioner's
attorney upon scheduling the institutional hearing.
(6) Upon an application for compassionate release, the
Department of Corrections shall provide the State's
Attorney serving the county in which the applying
petitioner's conviction was entered with a copy of the
petitioner's complete disciplinary files and complete
medical file and any evaluations, whether by prison
medical staff or outside medical providers, which form the
basis for the petitioner's application for compassionate
release. The records shall remain in the exclusive
possession of the State's Attorney and shall not be
disclosed other than in hearings on compassionate release
or written responses to the petitioner's compassionate
release petition.
(d) Institutional hearing. Hearings are public unless the
petitioner requests a non-public hearing. The petitioner has a
right to attend the hearing and to speak on the petitioner's

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own behalf. The petitioner may be represented by counsel and
may present witnesses to the Board members. Hearings shall be
governed by the Open Parole Hearings Act. Members of the
public shall be permitted to freely attend public hearings
without restriction.
(e) Voting procedure. Petitions shall be considered by
three-member panels, and decisions shall be made by simple
majority. Voting shall take place during the public hearing.
(f) Consideration. In considering a petition for release
under the statute, the Prisoner Review Board may consider the
following factors:
(i) the petitioner's diagnosis and likelihood of
recovery;
(ii) the approximate cost of health care to the
State should the petitioner remain in custody;
(iii) the impact that the petitioner's continued
incarceration may have on the provision of medical
care within the Department;
(iv) the present likelihood of and ability to pose
a substantial danger to the physical safety of a
specifically identifiable person or persons;
(v) any statements by the victim regarding
release; and
(vi) whether the petitioner's condition was
explicitly disclosed to the original sentencing judge
and taken into account at the time of sentencing.

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(f-1) Upon denying an eligible petitioner's application
for medical release, the Prisoner Review Board shall publish a
decision letter outlining the reason for denial. The decision
letter must include an explanation of each statutory factor
and the estimated annual cost of the petitioner's continued
incarceration, including the petitioner's medical care.
(g) Petitioners granted medical release shall be released
on mandatory supervised release for a period of 5 years
subject to Section 3-3-8, which shall operate to discharge any
remaining term of years imposed upon him or her. However, in no
event shall the eligible person serve a period of mandatory
supervised release greater than the aggregate of the
discharged underlying sentence and the mandatory supervised
release period as set forth in Section 5-4.5-20.
(h) Within 90 days of the receipt of the initial
application, the Prisoner Review Board shall conduct a hearing
if a hearing is requested and render a decision granting or
denying the petitioner's request for release.
(i) Nothing in this statute shall preclude a petitioner
from seeking alternative forms of release, including clemency,
relief from the sentencing court, post-conviction relief, or
any other legal remedy.
(j) This act applies retroactively, and shall be
applicable to all currently incarcerated people in Illinois.
(k) Data report. The Department of Corrections and the
Prisoner Review Board shall release a report annually

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published on their websites that reports the following
information about the Medical Release Program:
(1) The number of applications for medical release
received by the Board in the preceding year, and
information about those applications, including:
(i) demographic data about the petitioner,
including race or ethnicity, gender, age, and
institution;
(ii) the highest class of offense for which the
petitioner is incarcerated;
(iii) the relationship of the petitioner to the
person completing the application;
(iv) whether the petitioner had applied for
medical release before and been denied, and, if so,
when;
(v) whether the petitioner applied as a person who
is medically incapacitated or a person who is
terminally ill;
(vi) a basic description of the underlying medical
condition that led to the application; and
(vii) the institution in which the petitioner was
confined at the time of the application.
(2) The number of medical statements from the
Department of Corrections received by the Board.
(3) The number of institutional hearings on medical
release applications conducted by the Board including:

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(i) whether the petitioner was represented by an
attorney; and
(ii) whether the application was considered in a
public or non-public hearing.
(4) The number of people approved for medical release,
and information about them, including:
(i) demographic data about the individual
including race or ethnicity, gender, age, and zip code
to which they were released;
(ii) whether the person applied as a person who is
medically incapacitated or a person who is terminally
ill;
(iii) a basic description of the underlying
medical condition that led to the application;
(iv) a basic description of the medical setting
the person was released to;
(v) whether the petitioner was represented by an
attorney; and
(vi) whether the application was considered in a
public or non-public hearing.
(5) The number of people released on the medical
release program.
(6) The number of people approved for medical release
who experienced more than a one-month delay between
release decision and ultimate release, including:
(i) demographic data about the individuals

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including race or ethnicity, gender and age;
(ii) the reason for the delay;
(iii) whether the person remains incarcerated; and
(iv) a basic description of the underlying medical
condition of the applying person.
(7) For those individuals released on mandatory
supervised release due to a granted application for
medical release:
(i) the number of individuals who were serving
terms of mandatory supervised release because of
medical release applications during the previous year;
(ii) the number of individuals who had their
mandatory supervised release revoked; and
(iii) the number of individuals who died during
the previous year.
(8) Information on seriously ill individuals
incarcerated at the Department of Corrections, including:
(i) the number of people currently receiving
full-time one-on-one medical care or assistance with
activities of daily living within Department of
Corrections facilities and whether that care is
provided by a medical practitioner or an incarcerated
person, along with the institutions at which they are
incarcerated; and
(ii) the number of people who spent more than one
month in outside hospital care during the previous

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year and their home institutions.
All the information provided in this report shall be
provided in aggregate, and nothing shall be construed to
require the public dissemination of any personal medical
information.
(Source: P.A. 104-11, eff. 6-20-25.)