By Catrina Barker | The Center Square contributor
The Center Square

(The Center Square) – An Illinois state senator is renewing a push to change state law to require the immediate expulsion of students found responsible for sexual assault, arguing current policies leave victims unprotected and force families to take extreme measures to keep their children safe.

State Sen. Steve McClure, R-Springfield, said he filed the bill after a Christian County case in which a middle school girl was repeatedly attacked and later sexually assaulted by an older student who was neither expelled nor suspended, despite admitting to the assault. McClure said the victim’s family was instead forced to seek a court order of protection to keep their child safe at school.

“I don’t think a parent should have to go to court, pay for private counsel, and take time off work just to keep their child from being abused at school,” McClure said. “That’s what motivated this bill.”

McClure said the case is not isolated, noting lawmakers have heard from families in multiple counties who removed their children from public schools after districts refused to expel or suspend alleged attackers.

He added that while Illinois law mandates immediate expulsion for weapons violations, it does not require the same response for sexual assault, even when the act is admitted.

“That gap in the law is causing serious school safety problems,” McClure said. “Victims are forced to sit in classrooms, ride buses, and attend school activities with the person who assaulted them. That creates irreversible harm.”

The bill would treat sexual assault like weapons violations, allowing immediate expulsion after a school investigation and board determination, with a minimum one-year removal.

McClure said schools would still be required to investigate allegations and weigh evidence before making disciplinary decisions. The bill allows expelled students to attend alternative education programs and gives superintendents case-by-case review authority.

“These are often situations where students are not being held in juvenile detention indefinitely,” he said. “If they’re going to remain in school, it shouldn’t be the same school as the victim.”

McClure said recent changes to Illinois school discipline laws have made expulsions harder, contributing to repeat offenses, and stressed the bill does not change mandatory reporting or criminal prosecution, which remain separate from school discipline.

“This does not diminish the seriousness of sexual assault as a crime,” he said. “Just like bringing a gun to school, you can still be prosecuted. Schools simply need their own process to protect students while the criminal system runs its course.”

McClure said he would be open to looking at changes to mandatory reporting laws in the future, but emphasized that his immediate focus is passing the expulsion bill first. He said:

“…this bill does not touch the mandated reporter statute at all and I’d certainly be open to looking at that as well but first we have to try to get this bill passed…” said McClure.

The bill McClure filed this year is an amended version of last year’s legislation, reflecting negotiations with education groups, including the Illinois Education Association and the Principals Association.

McClure said the agreed-upon language “mirrors the language that already exists in law for guns and for the brass-knuckle situation” and was designed “specifically to withstand constitutional challenges.”

Beyond protecting students, McClure said the measure could also reduce costly lawsuits against school districts by ensuring stronger responses to sexual violence.

“I’ve heard of multiple high-dollar lawsuits where schools failed to protect students,” he said.