SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Patricia Van Pelt (D-Chicago) issued the following statement after voting to increase the state’s minimum wage to $15 an hour.

“After years of stagnant wages, it’s time for hardworking Illinoisans to finally get a raise,” Van Pelt said. “Raising the minimum wage will help lift families out of poverty and it will have the biggest impact on black, Latino and female workers. I’m proud to support this important effort to help reduce poverty and get us one step closer to closing the income inequality gap.”

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SPRINGFIELD – State Senator Patricia Van Pelt (D-Chicago) began her third term in the Illinois Senate today following the Senate inauguration in Springfield.

“I’m eager and ready for the new General Assembly to begin so I can continue working on important issues like ending the DNA processing backlog at the state crime lab and reforming the use of Chicago’s controversial gang databases,” Van Pelt said.

“I believe government can and should make life better for its citizens,” Van Pelt said. “Unfortunately, government has failed those who are waiting years for their loved one’s murder to be solved because of the backlog at the state crime lab. It has failed individuals who have been denied housing or employment because they were incorrectly labeled as a gang member in one of the flawed gang databases.”

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CHICAGO –– State Senator Patricia Van Pelt (D-Chicago) released the following statement today as the trial of Chicago Police Officer Jason Van Dyke in the shooting death of Laquan McDonald has ended with verdicts of guilty of second-degree murder and 16 counts of aggravated battery with a firearm:

“I will continue to pray for the McDonald family as I have since Laquan was taken from them. The verdict will not bring Laquan back or undo this tragedy. 

“The jury’s verdict simply makes a statement about the long journey ahead of us to repair and improve relations between our police and our community. 

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