Given the way legislators can spar, it’s hard to imagine anything passing in Springfield without some debate. But that’s just what happened with Andrea’s Law when it made its way through the Illinois Senate.

The bill is a murder registry that would require anyone convicted of first-degree murder to register with the local authorities for 10 years after their release. It’s named for Andrea Will, an Eastern Illinois student killed by an ex-boyfriend in 1998.

Many might welcome the opportunity to find out if a murderer is living nearby. But what impact do registries have on those who’ve served their time? For one perspective Eight Forty-Eight was joined by John Maki, Executive Director of the John Howard Association of Illinois. The organization works toward a fair and cost-effective criminal justice system.

Music Button: Robert Miles, “Everything or Nothing”, from the CD Thirteen, (Salt)