Jennifer Bos, the mother of 37-year-old Megan Bos, whose body was discovered in a bleach-filled container in Waukegan earlier this year, spoke out against Illinois’ controversial no-cash-bail policy and sanctuary laws. She joined host Dan Proft to share her daughter’s story and express frustration over what she sees as a justice system that prioritizes procedural loopholes over public safety and victims’ rights.
Megan Bos had long struggled with addiction, a battle worsened after the accidental death of her brother in 2020. Following stints in jail and rehab, she appeared to be turning a corner, her mother recalled. Megan had plans for her future and had secured a spot in a sober living house after her most recent treatment. But a paperwork delay caused her to be returned briefly to Lake County Jail, where she was held without the medication supporting her recovery. Days later, she disappeared.
Her body was later discovered in the garage of 52-year-old Jose Mendoza-Gonzalez, who had placed her in a garbage can filled with bleach. Mendoza-Gonzalez confessed to moving her body and destroying her phone but claimed she died of a drug overdose while he was upstairs. He said he didn’t call 911 because of his undocumented immigration status. He was charged with concealment of a death, abuse of a corpse, and obstruction of justice.
Under Illinois’ SAFE-T Act—referred to by critics as the “Pritzker Purge Law”—Mendoza-Gonzalez was released pending trial. Despite prosecutors’ objections, the charges did not meet the criteria required to hold a defendant in custody under the new guidelines. Adding to the controversy, Mendoza-Gonzalez’s undocumented status was not considered relevant to flight risk assessment due to Illinois’ sanctuary state laws, which prohibit law enforcement from using immigration status as a factor in detention.
Jennifer Bos expressed disbelief that someone who admitted to concealing her daughter’s death and was in the country illegally could be released so easily. She described a convoluted system that offers little recourse for victims’ families. Her concerns were shared by law enforcement officials and many local prosecutors who have criticized the SAFE-T Act since its passage.
Unable to get traction through local channels, Bos took her story to Washington, D.C. She attended the signing of the Halt Fentanyl Act and passed a handwritten note directly to Secret Service about her daughter’s case. She also spoke to lawmakers and staffers from Congress and the Judiciary Committee. Three days later, ICE detained Mendoza-Gonzalez.
While ICE’s action brought some relief, Bos said it also raised questions about accountability. Deportation, she argued, does not necessarily equate to justice. If Mendoza-Gonzalez were deported without serving time, she noted, he could be free in his home country within days. She emphasized that for families like hers, real justice means a fair trial and appropriate sentencing—not simply removal from the country.
Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart has stated that deportation could allow Mendoza-Gonzalez to evade punishment entirely. But Bos contends that even if he is convicted, the charges carry short sentences. With pre-trial curfew time credited toward his sentence, she fears he could serve as little as six months, if anything at all.
Bos is now working with Illinois state representatives Tom Weber and Patrick Sheehan to reform the SAFE-T Act. She believes the law, as it stands, is too lenient on defendants and too restrictive on judges, preventing them from keeping dangerous individuals in custody—even in cases involving suspicious deaths.
As Illinois continues to debate the merits of its criminal justice reforms, Bos hopes her daughter’s story will inspire lawmakers to consider the human cost of overly permissive policies. She is pushing for changes that prioritize public safety and victim rights without abandoning principles of fairness and due process.
In the meantime, she is left navigating a system that, in her words, has forced her to fight for basic accountability every step of the way.