SPRINGFIELD — Criminal charges could be filed against a fugitive’s spouse, parent and other close relatives who help him flee to avoid prosecution under a bill the Illinois House overwhelmingly sent to the governor Wednesday.
The measure is inspired by a Tribune investigation that showed relatives helped fugitives leave the United States and remain free even in cases where people were killed.
Illinois is one of 14 states that exempt close relatives from criminal charges in such cases, a point underscored in the Tribune series “Fugitives From Justice,” which this month was named a Pulitzer Prize finalist for investigative reporting. The new legislation would make it a felony for close relatives 18 and older to aid fugitives.
“You have responsibility as parent or a sibling or close relative not to take affirmative action to help someone escape a jurisdiction,” said sponsoring Rep. Sid Mathias, R-Buffalo Grove.
The House voted 114-0 to send the measure to Gov. Pat Quinn, who seems poised to sign it into law after a review.
“Just as the governor strongly believes that those who are convicted of a crime must pay the consequences, anyone who aids them in fleeing law enforcement should also be held accountable for their actions,” said Quinn spokeswoman Annie Thompson.
The Tribune documented the case of Carlos Castillo, who fled to Mexico in 2009 shortly before authorities charged him in a hit-and-run vehicle accident that killed student Rachel Gilliam. Castillo’s mother arranged for him to stay in Mexico with relatives, drove Castillo to the Greyhound station and has periodically sent him money and visited, according to Tribune interviews with Castillo and his mother.
In another case, law enforcement sources said the father of Muaz Haffar bought a plane ticket so Haffar could flee to Syria after being charged in 2005 with killing student Tombol Malik. The father, Dr. Nabil Haffar, has denied buying the ticket.