DuPage County State’s Attorney Joe Birkett  testified before an Illinois House of Representatives committee Wednesday morning in opposition to a bill that would allow prison inmates 50 and older to petition for early release.

Birkett, who also serves as president of the Illinois State’s Attorney’s Association, spoke in front of the House Prison Reform Committee at the James Thompson Center in downtown Chicago.

The bill would allow inmates who have served at least 25 consecutive years in prison to petition the Circuit Court for early release once they reach 50 years of age.