ANTIOCH, Ill. – The mayor of Antioch is calling on lawmakers to revisit and revise the SAFE-T Act after the release of a suspect in a high-profile case involving the death of a woman whose body was discovered in a storage container.
The backstory:
Jose Luis Mendoza-Gonzalez was first arrested in April on charges including concealment of a homicidal death and abuse of a corpse in connection with the death of 37-year-old Megan Bos.
Authorities said Bos was reported missing in March. In April, her body was found in a bleach-filled container in Waukegan. Mendoza-Gonzalez was arrested by federal immigration agents several months later.
According to police reports, Mendoza-Gonzalez told investigators that Bos died of a drug overdose at his home. Rather than seeking help, he allegedly broke her phone, left her body in the basement for several days and then placed it in the container outside.
Mendoza-Gonzalez, an undocumented immigrant, was released pending future court dates in accordance with the SAFE-T Act. However, on Sunday, he was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents at a market in Chicago.
Call for Change:
Mayor Scott Gartner said Wednesday that the circumstances of the case underscore the need for reforms to the SAFE-T Act, a controversial criminal justice law that eliminated cash bail in Illinois.
“I’m not expecting Springfield to say, ‘Okay, we’re going to revoke or repeal this whole act.’ But I would hope they would at least take some consideration to put some discretion back in the hands of the judges that hear these matters…,” Gartner said.
What’s next:
Bos’ mother is now working with state lawmakers to review and potentially revise the SAFE-T Act. Authorities have not released updated information regarding Mendoza-Gonzalez’s current detention status.
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