Stop Spreading False Info About SAFE-T Act, Romeo Nance Bail: Group

JOLIET, IL — The Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice issued a strongly worded press release on Thursday afternoon to correct what it says is significant misinformation circulating surrounding the mass murders in Joliet on Sunday.

“Tragedies are no time for politics, and it is inappropriate to trade on human sorrow to spread dangerous misinformation solely to score political points – and undermine policies that actually make our communities safer. Our hearts go out to all those impacted by these sad events,” declared Ben Rudell, ACLU of Illinois, a member of the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice.

According to the statewide organization, Joliet mass murder defendant's Romeo Nance’s previous Will County arrests occurred prior to the enactment of the Pretrial Fairness provisions of the SAFE-T Act. His most serious charged offense was aggravated discharge of a weapon, and the Will County judge set a $100,000 bail in that case.

In March 2023 — two months after Nance's arrest and six months before the elimination of cash bond — someone paid the required 10 percent, which was $10,000, to free Nance from custody.

On Wednesday, Joliet Patch reported that Romeo Nance's now-21-year-old girlfriend, Kyleigh Cleveland, was responsible for posting his bond, falsely identifying herself on court documents as being his sister.

Under the old pretrial laws, the prosecution had no authority to request Nance be denied release, according to the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice. Also, because aggravated discharge is a probationable offense, Nance was not eligible for detention at that time, regardless of how dangerous the judge believed Nance to be.

"This ensured he was given a money bond that could then be paid to secure his release," the organization explained.

Now, under the Pretrial Fairness Act, aggravated discharge is clearly listed as a charge for which release may be denied, the group announced in Thursday's press release. Nance was also facing several other weapons-related charges that were likewise previously ineligible for detention but are now detainable under the Pretrial Fairness Act.

"If Mr. Nance had been arrested while the Pretrial Fairness Act was in effect, the prosecution could have requested his detention and the court could have granted it. In at least one media report, a judge decried his inability to detain Nance’s girlfriend Kyleigh Cleveland-Singleton, who has been charged with obstructing justice," the Illinois Network for Pretrial Justice declared.

The social justice group further explained, "unlike Nance, Ms. Cleveland-Singleton’s charge does require she be released and given an initial opportunity to succeed while awaiting trial and presumed innocent. Cleveland-Singleton has not been accused of any violence, her offense is the lowest class of felony, and she is caring for a 3-year-old son who just lost numerous members of his family to violence. Importantly, the old money bond system also did not allow judges to deny someone release for obstruction of justice, a non-violent Class 4 felony."

Before the Pretrial Fairness Act took effect, Cleveland-Singleton would have been ordered released — either with or without payment of a money bond, the group pointed out.

"The court now retains the power to set numerous conditions of release that do not involve paying money. And though Ms. Cleveland-Singleton was ordered released today, she must remain on electronic monitoring. Moving forward, should Ms. Cleveland-Singleton violate the conditions of her pretrial release, the court has the power to take her into custody."

More Joliet Patch coverage:

Home Confinement, No More Jail Time For Romeo Nance's Girlfriend

2 Joliet West Students Among 7 Family Slain By Romeo Nance