SPRINGFIELD — Police would be prohibited from pulling over motorists solely because they have small items such as air fresheners dangling from their vehicle’s rearview mirror under legislation heading to Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s desk.
The legislation was passed by the Senate on Thursday in a 41-11 vote, with three Republicans — Seth Lewis of Bartlett, Dan McConchie of Hawthorn Woods and Craig Wilcox of McHenry — siding with the Democratic supermajority.
The bill seeks to prevent traffic stops for such minor infractions being used as a pretext to look for more serious offenses. Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias’ office, which initiated the legislation, said that such stops can be racially-motivated and have the potential to lead to violent confrontations between motorists and police.
In April 2021, Daunte Wright, a 20-year-old Black motorist, was shot and killed during a confrontation with police after being pulled over for a minor traffic violation. Authorities at the time said Wright was pulled over for having expired registration tags. But his mother has said he called her shortly before being shot, telling her he was stopped because of an air freshener hanging from his rearview mirror.
The white officer who fatally shot Wright has said she mistook her gun for her Taser weapon when she shot him. She was convicted of first- and second-degree manslaughter in the case and sentenced to about a year and a half in prison.
During the floor debate Thursday, state Sen. Christopher Belt, a Democrat from Swansea and the bill’s main Senate sponsor, said the legislation “really comes down to a civil rights issue.”
“We all have placards in our car to get onto the parking lot. I would hate for somebody to stop me every other day because that little bitty placard is in between the driver and the windshield,” said Belt, who is Black. “But in some places, that is used as the basis for stopping motorists.”
Several Senate Republicans argued the bill could jeopardize public safety.
Sen. Steve McClure, a Springfield Republican and former prosecutor in Sangamon County, noted that it remains unlawful for drivers to have anything that obstructs their view from any of their vehicle’s windows. He questioned why an exception would be made for stopping someone because of something from a review mirror that could block a driver’s view.
“I guess if your concern is about a small placard that’s in the front of a vehicle, then why not just clarify the law to say that in situations where there’s this object hanging that’s this size, that is not by definition obstructing the view?” McClure asked Belt during the debate.
Republican Sen. Jason Plummer said he understood the purpose of the bill but suggested that the legislation is an overreach and would restrict law enforcement from carrying out their duties.
“I’m not for people driving in our communities with obstructed views and the police not being able to pull them over,” Plummer said. “That’s silly. It makes no sense. And it’s extremely dangerous.”
Belt and fellow Democratic Sen. Laura Murphy, of Des Plaines, however, said a police officer can still pull over a driver if there’s an obvious impediment blocking them from seeing what’s in front, to the sides or behind them.
They suggested this can include someone overloading their vehicle with moving boxes to the point where the driver can’t see the road or their surroundings.
State Sen. Bill Cunningham, a Chicago Democrat, said during the debate that Republicans who spoke out against the bill raised legitimate questions about public safety, but echoed concerns about civil rights issues.
“Senator Belt is offering (the) bill not because of hypothetical situations but because of real world situations when motorists are pulled over on false pretenses, sometimes due to the color of their skin,” Cunningham said.
In a statement released after the Senate’s passage of the bill, the secretary of state’s office said Illinois is among a handful of states with laws banning items from hanging from a rearview mirror.
“There is absolutely no data to support that pulling people over for an air freshener or a rosary hanging from their rearview mirror reduces violent crime or prevents accidents,” Giannoulias said. “Amending the current law will not jeopardize public safety; instead, it will result in greater equity on the road and improve relationships between police and community by eliminating pretextual traffic stops that disproportionately affect people of color.”
If Pritzker signs the legislation, it would take effect Jan. 1.
jgorner@chicagotribune.com
