govt.fyi
Back to SB 3510
Illinois General Assembly· SB 3510Governor Approved

CRIMES AGAINST CHILDREN, the official text

Shown verbatim: the complete text as captured from the official PDF posted by the Illinois General Assembly, fetched 2026-09-25. Page and line markers are part of the official record; nothing is edited or removed. This is the current version. The official bill page.
SB3510 Enrolled                     LRB104 20564 WRO 34043 b

1   AN ACT concerning criminal law.

2   Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,

3 represented in the General Assembly:

4   Section 5. The Children's Advocacy Center Act is amended

5 by changing Sections 2.5 and 4 as follows:

6   (55 ILCS 80/2.5)

7   Sec. 2.5. Definitions. As used in this Section:

8   "Accreditation" means the process in which certification

9 of competency, authority, or credibility is presented by

10 standards set by the National Children's Alliance to ensure

11 effective, efficient, and consistent delivery of services by a

12 CAC.

13  "Child maltreatment" includes any act or occurrence, as

14 defined in Section 5 of the Criminal Code of 2012, under the

15 Children and Family Services Act or the Juvenile Court Act of

16 1987 involving either a child victim or child witness.

17  "Children's Advocacy Center" or "CAC" is a child-focused,

18 trauma-informed, facility-based program in which

19 representatives from law enforcement, child protection,

20 prosecution, mental health, forensic interviewing, medical,

21 and victim advocacy disciplines collaborate to interview

22 children, meet with a child's parent or parents, caregivers,

23 and family members, and make team decisions about the
    SB3510 Enrolled          -2-          LRB104 20564 WRO 34043 b

1 investigation, prosecution, safety, treatment, and support

2 services for child maltreatment cases.

3   "Children's Advocacy Centers of Illinois" or "CACI" is a

4 state chapter of the National Children's Alliance ("NCA") and

5 organizing entity for Children's Advocacy Centers in the State

6 of Illinois. It defines membership and engages member CACs in

7 the NCA accreditation process and collecting and sharing of

8 data, and provides training, leadership, and technical

9 assistance to existing and emerging CACs in the State.

10  "Electronic recording" includes a motion picture,

11 audiotape, videotape, or digital recording.

12  "Forensic interview" means an interview between a trained

13 forensic interviewer, as defined by NCA standards, and a child

14 in which the interviewer obtains information from children in

15 an unbiased and fact finding manner that is developmentally

16 appropriate and culturally sensitive to support accurate and

17 fair decision making by the multidisciplinary team in the

18 criminal justice and child protection systems. Whenever

19 practical, all parties involved in investigating reports of

20 child maltreatment shall observe the interview, which shall be

21 electronically recorded.

22  "Forensic interview transcription" means a verbatim

23 transcript of a forensic interview for the purpose of

24 translating the interview into another language.

25  "Multidisciplinary team" or "MDT" means a group of

26 professionals working collaboratively under a written
    SB3510 Enrolled  -3-  LRB104 20564 WRO 34043 b

1 protocol, who represent various disciplines from the point of

2 a report of child maltreatment to assure the most effective

3 coordinated response possible for every child. MDT members

4 shall access and share relevant information related to an

5 investigation to the extent authorized by applicable State and

6 federal privacy and confidentiality laws, so that

7 professionals involved in the investigation can coordinate

8 effectively, ensure the safety and well-being of the child,

9 and support a thorough and informed investigation while

10 protecting sensitive information. Employees from each

11 participating entity shall be included on the MDT. A CAC's MDT

12 must include professionals involved in the coordination,

13 investigation, and prosecution of child abuse and

14 professionals, such as victim advocates, involved in the

15 coordination of care for and treatment of victimscases,

16 including the CAC's staff, participating law enforcement

17 agencies, the county state's attorney, and the Illinois

18 Department of Children and Family Services, and specialized

19 medical and mental health providers must include professionals

20 involved in the delivery of services to victims of child

21 maltreatment and non-offending parent or parents, caregiver,

22 and their families. MDT members shall coordinate, communicate,

23 and keep non-offending parents and caregivers and their

24 families aware of the status of the investigation.

25  "National Children's Alliance" or "NCA" means the

26 professional membership organization dedicated to helping
    SB3510 Enrolled       -4-  LRB104 20564 WRO 34043 b

1 local communities respond to allegations of child abuse in an

2 effective and efficient manner. NCA provides training,

3 support, technical assistance and leadership on a national

4 level to state and local CACs and communities responding to

5 reports of child maltreatment. NCA is the national

6 organization that provides the standards for CAC

7 accreditation.

8   "Protocol" means a written methodology defining the

9 responsibilities of each of the MDT members in the

10 investigation and prosecution of child maltreatment within a

11 defined jurisdiction. Written protocols are signed documents

12 and are reviewed and/or updated annually, at a minimum, by a

13 CAC's Advisory Board.

14 (Source: P.A. 101-81, eff. 7-12-19; 101-236, eff. 1-1-20.)

15  (55 ILCS 80/4) (from Ch. 23, par. 1804)

16  Sec. 4. Children's Advocacy Center.

17  (a) Children's Advocacy Centers shall A CAC may be

18 established to coordinate the activities of the various

19 agencies involved in the investigation, prosecution and

20 treatment of child maltreatment. The individual county or

21 regional Advisory Board shall set the written protocol of the

22 CAC within the appropriate jurisdiction. The operation of the

23 CAC may be funded through public or private grants, contracts,

24 donations, fees, and other available sources under this Act.

25 Each CAC shall operate to the best of its ability in accordance
    SB3510 Enrolled  -5-               LRB104 20564 WRO 34043 b

1 with available funding. In counties in which a referendum has

2 been adopted under Section 5 of this Act, the Advisory Board,

3 by the majority vote of its members, shall submit a proposed

4 annual budget for the operation of the CAC to the county board,

5 which shall appropriate funds and levy a tax sufficient to

6 operate the CAC. The county board in each county in which a

7 referendum has been adopted shall establish a Children's

8 Advocacy Center Fund and shall deposit the net proceeds of the

9 tax authorized by Section 6 of this Act in that Fund, which

10 shall be kept separate from all other county funds and shall

11 only be used for the purposes of this Act.

12  (b) The Advisory Board shall pay from the Children's

13 Advocacy Center Fund or from other available funds the

14 salaries of all employees of the Center and the expenses of

15 acquiring a physical plant for the Center by construction or

16 lease and maintaining the Center, including the expenses of

17 administering the coordination of the investigation,

18 prosecution and treatment referral of child maltreatment under

19 the provisions of the protocol adopted pursuant to this Act.

20  (b-1) Recognizing the pivotal role of CACs in providing

21 comprehensive support to trafficked children and youth, each

22 CAC shall:

23  (1) ensure that each county's multidisciplinary

24  multi-disciplinary team protocol includes a response to

25  allegations of human trafficking;

26  (2) increase the capacity of each multidisciplinary
    SB3510 Enrolled         -6-     LRB104 20564 WRO 34043 b

1   multi-disciplinary team to identify, assess, and serve

2   trafficked children and youth;

3   (3) facilitate collaboration between the CAC, law

4   enforcement, child welfare agencies, health care

5   providers, and other pertinent stakeholders to ensure a

6   synchronized and trauma-informed response to trafficked

7   children and youth;

8   (4) ensure all CAC employees and contractors treating,

9   interviewing, or coming in contact with victims receive

10  training on victim-centered, trauma-informed response to

11  child and youth victims of human trafficking, including

12  identifying and addressing the unique needs of trafficked

13  children and youth, thereby enabling access to appropriate

14  support services and legal remedies; and

15  (5) work with the Department of Human Services to

16  establish standards for victim-centered, trauma-informed

17  training for CACs and members of multidisciplinary

18  multi-disciplinary teams.

19  (c) Every CAC shall include at least the following

20 components:

21  (1) A multidisciplinary, coordinated systems approach

22  to the investigation of child maltreatment, which shall

23  include, at a minimum:

24              (i) a comprehensive an interagency notification

25  procedure for all MDT partners;

26              (ii) a policy on multidisciplinary team
    SB3510 Enrolled  -7-   LRB104 20564 WRO 34043 b

1   collaboration and communication that requires

2   coordination among applicable MDT members and

3   establishes procedures for the exchange of information

4   requires MDT members share information pertinent to

5   investigations and the safety of the child to the

6   extent permitted under applicable state and federal

7   privacy and confidentiality laws, through secure and

8   confidential methods. The policy shall require that

9   MDT members have access to and share relevant

10  information related to an investigation to the extent

11  authorized by applicable State and federal privacy and

12  confidentiality laws, to facilitate MDT coordination,

13  support the investigative responsibilities of the

14  agencies with statutory authority, promote the safety

15  and well-being of the child, and support a thorough

16  and informed investigation while protecting sensitive

17  information children;

18  (iii) (blank);

19  (iv) a description of the role each agency has in

20  responding to a referral for services in an individual

21  case;

22  (v) a dispute resolution process between the

23  involved agencies when a conflict arises on how to

24  proceed on the referral of a particular case;

25  (vi) a process for the CAC to assist in the

26  forensic interview of children that witness alleged
    SB3510 Enrolled    -8-  LRB104 20564 WRO 34043 b

1   crimes;

2        (vii) a child-friendly, trauma-informed trauma

3   informed space for children and their non-offending

4   family members;

5        (viii) an MDT approach including law enforcement,

6   prosecution, medical, mental health, victim advocacy,

7   the Department of Children and Family Services, and

8   other community resources, and, if appropriate, school

9   personnel;

10       (ix) medical evaluation on-site or off-site

11  through referral;

12       (x) mental health services on-site or off-site

13  through referral;

14       (xi) on-site forensic interviews;

15       (xii) culturally competent services;

16       (xiii) case tracking and review;

17       (xiv) case staffing on each investigation;

18       (xv) effective organizational capacity; and

19       (xvi) a policy or procedure to familiarize a child

20  and his or her non-offending family members or

21  guardians with the court process as well as

22  preparations for testifying in court, if necessary;

23  and

24       (xvii) participation of appropriate MDT members,

25  as relevant to the circumstances of the case;

26  (2) A safe, separate space with assigned personnel
    SB3510 Enrolled          -9-  LRB104 20564 WRO 34043 b

1   designated for the investigation and coordination of child

2   maltreatment cases;

3   (3) A multidisciplinary case review process for

4   purposes of decision-making, problem solving, systems

5   coordination, and information sharing;

6   (4) A comprehensive client tracking system to receive

7   and coordinate information concerning child maltreatment

8   cases from each participating agency;

9   (5) Multidisciplinary specialized training for all

10  professionals involved with the victims and non-offending

11  family members in child maltreatment cases; and

12  (6) A process for evaluating the effectiveness of the

13  CAC and its operations.

14  (d) In the event that a CAC has been established as

15 provided in this Section, the Advisory Board of that CAC may,

16 by a majority vote of the members, authorize the CAC to

17 coordinate the activities of the various agencies involved in

18 the investigation, prosecution, and treatment referral in

19 cases of serious or fatal injury to a child. For CACs receiving

20 funds under Section 5 or 6 of this Act, the Advisory Board

21 shall provide for the financial support of these activities in

22 a manner similar to that set out in subsections (a) and (b) of

23 this Section and shall be allowed to submit a budget that

24 includes support for physical abuse and neglect activities to

25 the County Board, which shall appropriate funds that may be

26 available under Section 5 of this Act. In cooperation with the
    SB3510 Enrolled            - 10 - LRB104 20564 WRO 34043 b

1 Department of Children and Family Services Child Death Review

2 Teams, the Department of Children and Family Services Office

3 of the Inspector General, and other stakeholders, this

4 protocol must be initially implemented in selected counties to

5 the extent that State appropriations or funds from other

6 sources for this purpose allow.

7   (e) CACI may also provide technical assistance and

8 guidance to the Advisory Boards.

9   (e-5) CACI shall convene an annual meeting of statewide

10 leadership from each MDT discipline to review data, discuss

11 and analyze findings, and work collaboratively to identify

12 service gaps and opportunities for process improvements. CACI

13 shall create a report that summarizes discussion at the annual

14 meeting and shall share the report with the leadership of MDT

15 partners and other agencies and publish the report on CACI's

16 website.

17       (f) In this Section:

18  "Child" or "children" refers to persons under 18 years of

19 age.

20  "Youth" means persons between the ages of 18 and 24 years.

21 (Source: P.A. 104-159, eff. 1-1-26.)

22  Section 10. The Criminal Code of 2012 is amended by

23 changing Section 12C-5 as follows:

24  (720 ILCS 5/12C-5) (was 720 ILCS 5/12-21.6)
    SB3510 Enrolled  - 11 - LRB104 20564 WRO 34043 b

1   Sec. 12C-5. Endangering the life or health of a child.

2   (a) A person commits endangering the life or health of a

3 child when he or she knowingly: (1) causes or permits the life

4 or health of a child under the age of 18 to be endangered; or

5 (2) causes or permits a child to be placed in circumstances

6 that endanger the child's life or health. It is not a violation

7 of this Section for a person to relinquish a child in

8 accordance with the Abandoned Newborn Infant Protection Act.

9   (b) A trier of fact may infer that a child 6 years of age

10 or younger is unattended if that child is left in a motor

11 vehicle for more than 10 minutes.

12  (c) "Unattended" means either: (i) not accompanied by a

13 person 14 years of age or older; or (ii) if accompanied by a

14 person 14 years of age or older, out of sight of that person.

15  (d) Sentence. Except as otherwise provided in this

16 subsection, a A violation of this Section is a Class A

17 misdemeanor. A second or subsequent violation of this Section

18 A person who is convicted of a second or subsequent violation

19 of this Section is guilty of a Class 3 felony. A person who is

20 convicted of a violation of this Section after having

21 previously been convicted under the laws of any other state of

22 an offense that is substantially equivalent to the offense of

23 endangering the life or health of a child, is guilty of is a

24 Class 3 felony. A violation of this Section that is a proximate

25 cause of the death of the child is a Class 3 felony for which a

26 person, if sentenced to a term of imprisonment, shall be
    SB3510 Enrolled       - 12 - LRB104 20564 WRO 34043 b

1 sentenced to a term of not less than 2 years and not more than
2 10 years. A parent, who is found to be in violation of this
3 Section with respect to his or her child, may be sentenced to
4 probation for this offense pursuant to Section 12C-15.
5 (Source: P.A. 97-1109, eff. 1-1-13.)

6   Section 15. The Bill of Rights for Children is amended by

7 changing Section 3.5 as follows:

8   (725 ILCS 115/3.5)

9   Sec. 3.5. Right to forensic interview with children's

10 advocacy center.

11  (a) In this Section:

12  "Child" means a person under 18 years of age.

13  "Youth" means a person between the ages of 18 and 24 years.

14  (b) Every child reported to the Department of Children and

15 Family Services or law enforcement to be a victim of sexual

16 assault or sexual abuse, trafficking in persons, involuntary

17 servitude, and related offenses, whose case is accepted by

18 either agency for investigation has the right to have that

19 child's forensic interview conducted by a forensic interviewer

20 from a children's advocacy center accredited according to the

21 Children's Advocacy Center Act and serving the child's area or

22 jurisdiction where the incident(s) occurred, when such service

23 is accessible based on the CAC's available resources. The

24 agency with statutory investigative authority shall notify the
SB3510 Enrolled  - 13 - LRB104 20564 WRO 34043 b

 1 child, in a manner that is developmentally appropriate and
 2 consistent with the child's capacity to understand, of the
 3 child's right to receive a forensic interview through a CAC.
 4 This right may be asserted by the child or, when appropriate
 5 based on the child's developmental capacity, by the child's
 6 parent or guardian with the child's assent. The agency may
 7 also notify the child's parent or guardian of this right,
 8 unless the agency determines that the notification would
 9 conflict with the child's expressed wishes, would be
10 inconsistent with the child's developmental capacity, or would
11 deter the child from participating in the investigation. If
12 the agency with statutory investigating authority is a law
13 enforcement agency, then the law enforcement agency shall not
14 notify the parent or guardian of a child 13 years of age or
15 older, unless the law enforcement agency confirms that the
16 notification would not conflict with the child's expressed
17 wishes. The child may request the presence of a support person
18 when notice is given under this Section. informing the
19 investigating personnel at the Department of Children and
20 Family Services or the law enforcement agency that the parent
21 or guardian wants the child to have the child's interview
22 conducted by the children's advocacy center. Each local CAC
23 protocol will outline a process to address situations in which
24 it is deemed not possible for a forensic interview to occur, to
25 ensure a trauma-informed response with follow up services from
26 the CAC.
   SB3510 Enrolled  - 14 - LRB104 20564 WRO 34043 b

1 (Source: P.A. 102-477, eff. 1-1-22.)

2  Section 20. The Privacy of Child Victims of Criminal

3 Sexual Offenses Act is amended by changing Section 3 as

4 follows:

5  (725 ILCS 190/3) (from Ch. 38, par. 1453)

6  Sec. 3. Confidentiality of law enforcement and court

7 records. Notwithstanding any other law to the contrary,

8 inspection and copying of law enforcement records maintained

9 by any law enforcement agency or all circuit court records

10 maintained by any circuit clerk relating to any investigation

11 or proceeding pertaining to a criminal sexual offense, by any

12 person, except a judge, state's attorney, assistant state's

13 attorney, Attorney General, Assistant Attorney General,

14 psychologist, psychiatrist, social worker, doctor,

15 non-offending parent or guardian, parole agent, aftercare

16 specialist, probation officer, multidisciplinary team member,

17 as defined in the Children's Advocacy Center Act, defendant,

18 defendant's attorney, advocate, or victim's attorney (as

19 defined in Section 3 of the Rights of Crime Victims and

20 Witnesses Act) in any criminal proceeding or investigation

21 related thereto, shall be restricted to exclude the identity

22 of any child who is a victim of such criminal sexual offense or

23 alleged criminal sexual offense unless a court order is issued

24 authorizing the removal of such restriction as provided under
    SB3510 Enrolled      - 15 - LRB104 20564 WRO 34043 b

1 this Section of a particular case record or particular records

2 of cases maintained by any circuit court clerk. A court may,

3 for the child's protection and for good cause shown, prohibit

4 any person or agency present in court from further disclosing

5 the child's identity.

6   A court may prohibit such disclosure only after giving

7 notice and a hearing to all affected parties. In determining

8 whether to prohibit disclosure of the minor's identity, the

9 court shall consider:

10  (1) the best interest of the child; and

11  (2) whether such nondisclosure would further a

12  compelling State interest.

13  When a criminal sexual offense is committed or alleged to

14 have been committed by a school district employee or any

15 individual contractually employed by a school district, a copy

16 of the criminal history record information relating to the

17 investigation of the offense or alleged offense shall be

18 transmitted to the superintendent of schools of the district

19 immediately upon request or if the law enforcement agency

20 knows that a school district employee or any individual

21 contractually employed by a school district has committed or

22 is alleged to have committed a criminal sexual offense, the

23 superintendent of schools of the district shall be immediately

24 provided a copy of the criminal history record information.

25 The copy of the criminal history record information to be

26 provided under this Section shall exclude the identity of the
    SB3510 Enrolled        - 16 - LRB104 20564 WRO 34043 b

1 child victim. The superintendent shall be restricted from

2 revealing the identity of the victim. Nothing in this Article

3 precludes or may be used to preclude a mandated reporter from

4 reporting child abuse or child neglect as required under the

5 Abused and Neglected Child Reporting Act.

6   For the purposes of this Act, "criminal history record

7 information" means:

8   (i) chronologically maintained arrest information,

9   such as traditional arrest logs or blotters;

10  (ii) the name of a person in the custody of a law

11  enforcement agency and the charges for which that person

12  is being held;

13  (iii) court records that are public, as defined in

14  paragraph (1) of subsection (b) of Section 5 of the Court

15  Record and Document Accessibility Act;

16  (iv) records that are otherwise available under State

17  or local law; or

18  (v) records in which the requesting party is the

19  individual identified, except as provided under part (vii)

20  of paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of Section 7 of the

21  Freedom of Information Act.

22 (Source: P.A. 102-651, eff. 1-1-22; 102-813, eff. 5-13-22;

23 103-166, eff. 1-1-24.)
Every fact on this page links to its source, starting with the official bill record.