The following was written by Mike Reed of Sheridan, IL, courtesy of MoveOn.org.

State Representative Constance Howard (D-Chicago), working in conjunction with the NAACP’s Far South Suburban branch, introduced on February 15 a bill in the state legislature which would make fraudulent foreclosures in Illinois a crime, with the perpetrators facing both criminal and civil consequences.

This issue has been taken up nationally already, but backers of the Illinois bill (HB 5665) have found that many judges in foreclosure cases have only concerned themselves with whether homeowners have made timely payments on loans—not with determining the actual legality of the foreclosure proceedings.

The bill, according to Representative Howard and David Lowery, head of the local NAACP branch, would change the Code of Civil Procedure in these cases to result in criminal punishment for any fraud and leave the homeowner with a way to recover damages suffered in the transactions, including attorney’s fees.

This bill would be important for several reasons:

• First, it would stop illegal foreclosures.
• Second, practices such as robo-signing, by which banks have ignored the rules involved in foreclosures, would be dealt with more harshly.
• Third, the Illinois bill would give homeowners added protection—current statutes are not strict enough or are not fully enforced.
• Fourth, the bill would not just criminalize fraudulent foreclosures only, but would give homeowners other avenues by which to gain justice.
• Finally, this law would serve to protect all homeowners, not just those on lower income levels.

Citizens who want to know more about their status regarding foreclosures should contact their state representative’s office.