Last week, Illinois’ Governor signed into law a change in how persons pleading guilty to criminal offenses are admonished. Public Act 82-553 amends 725 ILCS 5/113-4 to require that the court must admonish a defendant pleading guilty to many of the collateral consequences attendant to that plea.
The new law states that “(i)f the defendant pleads guilty such plea shall not be accepted until the court shall have fully explained to the defendant the following: (1) the maximum and minimum penalty provided by law for the offense which may be imposed by the court; (2) as a consequence of a conviction or a plea of guilty, the sentence for any future conviction may be increased or there may be a higher possibility of the imposition of consecutive sentences; (3) as a consequence of a conviction or a plea of guilty, there may be registration requirements that restrict where the defendant may work, live or be present; and (4) as a consequence of a conviction or a plea of guilty, there may be an impact upon the defendant’s ability to, among others (A) retain or obtain housing in the public or private market; (B) retain or obtain employment; and (c) retain or obtain a firearm, an occupational license, or a driver’s license.”
Public Act 82-553 is effective January 1, 2017 and will help eliminate future surprises for those who plea guilty to an Illinois criminal offense.
