Illinois Supreme Court upholds law eliminating cash bail, sets Sept. 18 as start date for new system

The Illinois Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that eliminating cash bail for defendants awaiting trial does not violate the Illinois Constitution, allowing a historic change to the criminal justice system to go forward over objections from county prosecutors who challenged the law.

Tuesday’s 5-2 Supreme Court decision came more than four months after the high court heard arguments in the case in mid-March, when a coalition of state’s attorneys argued that the legislature overstepped its authority in approving the law. The court’s decisions split along party lines, with the two Republican justices, David Overstreet and...