Kane County Sheriff’s Office

37W755 IL Rt 38 • St Charles, IL 60175

Tel: (630) 232-6840 • Fax: (630) 513-6984
www.KaneSheriff.com
Ron Hain, Sheriff Amy Johnson, Undersheriff

February 24th, 2023

PRESS RELEASE

Response to Some State Democrats “Kane Sheriff Rebuttal”

St Charles – First, I, Sheriff Ron Hain would like to thank the Daily Herald for highlighting my address to
the Kane County Board Legislative Committee over Democrat-led legislation that has missed the mark. I
would also like to thank them for forwarding a “rebuttal” from a few local Democrat representatives, since
they did not address their concerns with me, as has been the case over the last four-plus years.

Our County’s Legislative Committee is commissioned to address new laws and statewide initiatives that
may affect or benefit Kane County; therefore, it is appropriate to report to them when concerns arise. I
support considerations of firearms limitations for illicit usage as attempted in the Assault Weapon Ban
legislation and I am an advocate for a no cash bail system and enhanced police professionalism standards
as addressed in the SAFE-T Act. However, both of these attempts to address societal concerns are now
mired in Supreme Court review. Mostly due to some majority of the legislators’ failure to include the
professionals who do this work every day and have been committed to this profession for decades. When
was the last time we saw so much formative and substantive legislation immediately curbed due to
unconstitutional inclusions?

We need to remember, also, that this party speaks of mental health as a priority and core concern. Yet
while passing the currently contested assault weapon ban that is meant to address mass killings, they also
passed a bill that delays the responsibility of the Illinois Department of Human Services to take people
into proper supportive care from what has now become our State’s largest mental health institutions:
county jails.

My statements against this behavior is out of a direct statutory responsibility to keep all of my citizens
safe in Kane County. If they had included us in conversations from start to finish, we could have had an
opportunity to get it right and get it into action. Of the five legislators who signed the “rebuttal,” I heard
from one regarding the assault ban legislation, to which I replied with qualified and experienced feedback
from several law enforcement officers with over one hundred years of police and law experience. None
of which was taken into consideration. Regarding the SAFE-T Act, I proactively expressed concerns over
 Kane County Sheriff’s Office

37W755 IL Rt 38 • St Charles, IL 60175

Tel: (630) 232-6840 • Fax: (630) 513-6984
www.KaneSheriff.com
Ron Hain, Sheriff Amy Johnson, Undersheriff

some portions of the Bill to the same legislator, but no collaboration was offered and none of the concerns
were included in the final iteration.

While the Illinois Sheriff’s Association, Fraternal Order of Police, and Illinois State Police where invited for
input, they were largely ignored. Ultimately, the primary law enforcement representatives that the SAFE-
T Act sponsors “allowed” at the table were State’s Attorneys Mosser (Kane) and Berlin (DuPage) through
the finishing trailer bills. This is not how our system is supposed to work and the end result is legislation
held in legal limbo. The inflammatory language of their rebuttal speaks to their continued ignorance of
facts, laws, and the totality of the constitution. I have been a staunch advocate and well-recognized icon
of justice reform in the State with many initiatives that are considered far too progressive for some, but
have proven successful and gained national attention.

To the point of their last paragraph, communication is exactly my goal and I would welcome collaboration
from any of them as I have desperately pressed for that need during my two terms. Unfortunately, it has
come to the point where I need to raise public awareness of these issues.

Ron Hain
Kane County Sheriff