In the last 20 years, Illinois has released a spate of inmates who were wrongfully convicted, some after it was determined they were tortured into giving confessions. In fact, the state was faced with so many claims of torture that it created the Torture Relief and Inquiry Commission in 2009.
Prison
Fair’s Fight: Former Marine Still Proclaims Innocence, Despite Legal Setbacks and 25 Years in Prison
Top officials with the Illinois Department of Corrections testified in front of a key panel of state lawmakers. Gov. J.B. Pritzker previously announced a plan to close Stateville Correctional Center in Crest Hill and Logan Correctional Center in Lincoln.
Appointee Jim Montgomery will be responsible for overseeing administrative board operations, including bolstering domestic violence prevention training and “other important equity-based trainings for board members,” according to the governor’s office.
“It’s one thing to say that I think the judgment was in error,” Donald Shelton said in an exclusive interview with WTTW News. “It’s another thing to say that there was a lack of concern for a victim of domestic violence.”
The killing of 11-year-old Jayden Perkins is drawing attention to a small state board responsible for deciding when prisoners can be released on parole.
Housing at Stateville Correctional Center is “not suitable for any 21st century correctional center.” Logan Correctional Center is “inefficient, ineffective, and unsuitable for any population.”
An independent report identified Illinois’ Stateville and Logan prisons as outdated and in need of costly repairs.
A new bill in the General Assembly would seek to remove the roughly $200,000 cap on payments to exonerees that maxes out at the 14-year mark, replacing it with a payout of $50,000 per year, capped at just over $2 million.
Cook County Jail provides medications for opioid use disorder to incarcerated people. Where frustration comes from advocates — and local officials — is the limitations of the Illinois Department of Corrections’ medication programming in prisons.
The West Side gallery is in line with work the Prison + Neighborhood Arts Project has been doing for over a decade: connecting teaching artists and scholars to incarcerated students through classes, workshops and lectures.
The Illinois Department of Corrections has awarded a new contract to the controversial Wexford Health Sources, the same private health care provider that’s been handling medical care in the state’s prison system since 2011.
In December, Jimmy Soto saw the sunrise over Lake Michigan for the first time in 42 years. He is now discovering a completely different world from the one he left.
The Illinois secretary of state’s office, which oversees a number of library grant programs, said the new law does apply to prison libraries as they are eligible for grants.
The Franklin County Juvenile Detention Center abruptly closed on Dec. 31. The judge who ordered the closure said staffing shortages made it difficult to meet state standards for caring for youth in custody.
Charles Collins, 49, was sentenced to life in prison without parole in relation to a 2010 charge for cocaine possession with intent to sell. It was his third felony, making him eligible for an enhanced sentence under the state’s habitual criminal, or “three-strikes,” law.
Darien Harris had served more than 12 years of his 76-year sentence before prosecutors decided not to move forward with their case and dropped the charges against him on Tuesday.