Too often the headlines out of Springfield highlight our dysfunction: how lawmakers are not doing their jobs or pushing problems off for another day. I had hoped last week to be able to flip that tired story line with a strong collaborative policy statement to address the violence on our city streets. It was not to be.

I want to explain my disappointment in how the fall veto session ended on my bill providing tougher penalties for serious gun crimes and my determination to get this right. We cannot afford to get this wrong.

Last spring, I introduced a bill to increase penalties for gun crimes, working with Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Chicago police Superintendent Garry McCarthy and Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez. Our goal was to send the crystal-clear message to those using guns to terrorize our streets that they will be caught, and they will pay a serious price behind bars.

From the outset, opposition came from both sides of the usual split we see on gun issues in Springfield. Gun owners, represented by the National Rifle Association and downstate legislators, were concerned the bill would impact people from other states who accidentally carry loaded guns with no intent of using them unlawfully, yet would receive a three-year prison sentence. Some other colleagues, including gun control proponents in the Democratic caucus, argued that the bill was not addressing the root causes of our violence problem and would further strain a prison system and budget already under tremendous pressure.

We took these concerns seriously. The mayor's office and I worked for months, through countless discussions with opponents on both sides, to address their concerns and shape better policy. And while we didn't get everything we want, I thought we reached a breakthrough compromise last week when we agreed to start by focusing narrowly on felons and gang members carrying guns illegally, earning the support of downstate members.

The version I expected to get a vote on the final day of the veto session is a step in the right direction. It maintained the current penalty for first-time gun offenders and strengthened penalties for repeat offenders by providing a four-year prison sentence for felons carrying guns and preventing them from receiving boot camp for those offenses.

Some opposition remained, but the bill was primed to pass the House. Instead, parliamentary tricks were used by my colleagues to prevent a vote on the bill before we adjourned. We were never able to have the policy debate so many of us wanted, and created yet another "Springfield shenanigans" set of headlines that we should be ashamed of.

Make no mistake — this debate was a matter of life and death. I believe this law would have prevented the shootings that left 13 people wounded, including a 3-year-old, this fall in Chicago's Cornell Square Park in the Back of the Yards neighborhood. It would have prevented at least five murders and more than 40 other shootings this year, including several instances where gun criminals attacked police officers. Unfortunately, these types of shootings are likely to continue in part due to gamesmanship in our legislature.

Beyond the gamesmanship, I am disheartened because I thought for the second time in just a few months — after we approved a compromise on concealed carry — that we were moving past the divisions on gun legislation that have roiled us for so many years. Here we listened to the concerns, worked through the issues and made thoughtful changes.

The easy move now would be to give up. But I am determined not to let politics trump good policy. I will work over the next few weeks to make the case for why we need this bill, in hopes we can take it up when the legislature returns. And my commitment to the opponents, despite what happened, is to work with them to address their concerns.

This bill will not solve Chicago's violence problem. We need a comprehensive, long-term strategy to provide the resources, legal structure and support to get there. But I believe we cannot let Springfield's procrastination legacy doom us to more killings. Let's work to put the worst of the worst behind bars and help those who need a new direction.