Illinois lawmakers recognize that the number of shootings, carjackings and other instances of street violence are unsettling to voters. And they’re ready to act. But will they act thoughtfully, thoroughly and wisely?

The increasing level of street violence in Illinois — a 9-year-old boy grazed in the head by a shooter in Danville, a man shot in the leg in the parking lot of a shopping mall in Champaign, a 16-year-old girl injured by gunfire in Chicago — has the attention of Illinois lawmakers.

Those shootings all occurred this past weekend, during the dead of winter. It has authorities concerned about how bad things might be in the long, hot days of the upcoming summer.

It also has state lawmakers concerned about the level, frequency and ferocity of violent crime in Illinois. Republican senators have introduced a package of six bills, including one that would make $125 million available to police departments for grants to buy body cameras and improve training and another that would require a mandatory 10-year sentence for anyone convicted of violent gun offenses, including aggravated carjackings and aggravated discharge of a weapon.

Democratic senators are promising a package of bills, none introduced yet, that would “provide solutions to several of the problems law-enforcement officers are facing,” according to a statement. The initiatives were developed after meetings with the Illinois Sheriffs’ Association and representatives of the Fraternal Order of Police.

These headline-grabbing ideas by both parties may be worthwhile, but will they get adequate review by prosecutors, criminologists, social workers and other experts? Not likely, given the constraints of the legislative calendar.

Because it’s an election year when every single legislator must face the voters and because the primary will be held in late June, lawmakers have set up an unusual schedule that has them out of Springfield by April 8.

That means the Legislature has about a month and half to discuss the bills, get limited input from experts, debate the proposals in committee, discuss amendments and vote them up or down on the floor.

In reality, this has to be done in the 26 days remaining on the legislative calendar, in addition to discussing and voting on all the other issues facing lawmakers, including the budget and the possibility of temporary tax cuts.

The record number of shootings in Illinois cities last year, including Champaign-Urbana, Peoria and Chicago, has citizens fearful. Developers in Chicago have said they’re having difficulty marketing properties because of concerns about violence. Anecdotally, we hear from businesses and University of Illinois officials about how street violence blunts recruitment efforts in C-U.

Criminologists contend there are many possible reasons for the increase in street violence, among them easy access to guns, social isolation because of the pandemic, retaliation ginned up by social media, distrust of government and police and a general feeling of disquiet and despair among young Black men.

We’re skeptical that lawmakers will fully address those concerns, along with the needs of law enforcement, in any kind of careful, reflective manner in just 26 session days. In an ideal world, the dreadful spike in murders, shootings, carjackings and other violent crimes in Illinois cities would be discussed thoroughly by state government and would not be rushed to meet an artificial deadline. But that, we fear, is what we’re going to get.