Politics

Advocates Ask Pritzker, IDOC to Endorse Transfer Plan for Women at Logan Prison

When Illinois closed its prison in Dwight more than a decade ago, the transfer to Logan Correctional Center left incarcerated women traumatized: After being stuck on buses for hours, the prison that awaited them wasn’t clean and most staff weren’t trained to work in a women’s facility.

Now, as the state is pitching to close Logan, the largest women’s prison in Illinois, advocates want to ensure that history is not repeated.

On Tuesday, members of the No New Prisons IL campaign gathered at Daley Plaza to call on Gov. JB Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Corrections to endorse the Logan Transfer Rapid Response Plan, which the campaign hopes will mitigate the harm of prison transfers once Logan closes. The campaign said they shared the plan with the governor’s office and IDOC last month and have received only “general acknowledgements” of the request.

“We cannot wait any longer; people incarcerated at Logan cannot wait any longer; care cannot wait,” said Chez Rumpf of the No New Prisons IL campaign.

Naomi Puzzello, an IDOC spokesperson, said in a statement that the department is “committed to a transition that prioritizes the well-being of individuals in custody” and is engaging with various stakeholders. The Stateville and Logan rebuild project is still in the initiation and planning phase, Puzzello said.

The governor’s office did not respond to WTTW News’ request for comment Tuesday.

In March 2024, Pritzker announced the closure and rebuild of both Stateville and Logan correctional centers, allocating $900 million for the projects. The decision came after a state-commissioned report found that the two prisons accumulated more than $402 million in deferred maintenance costs.

Stateville closed this March after two lawsuits alleging decrepit and isolating conditions led to the transfers of incarcerated men to prisons across the state.

IDOC has said that Logan will remain open during the rebuilding process of the new women’s prison. But given that Logan is approaching an “inoperable” rating according to that report, advocates want to ensure that incarcerated women face the least amount of harm possible should the prison close prior to the completion of the rebuild.

The campaign’s plan calls for Pritzker and IDOC to release as many of the 1,100 women at Logan as possible through mechanisms like parole, clemency and medical release. But as of mid-December last year, Pritzker granted only six clemency petitions that landed on his desk in 2024.

For those going through the transfer, the campaign’s plan calls for communication around the closure of the prison and transfers; assurance that communications will be available as long as possible prior to the transfers; and uninterrupted access to programming, legal resources and personal belongings.

It additionally calls for no restraints or strip searches during the transfer process. The plan says the receiving facility should be thoroughly cleaned and provide women prompt access to water, food, health care and commissary services.

At the news conference, Ana Navarro of the Illinois Prison Project recalled her own experience going through the transfer to Logan: strip searches and delays in medication, communication with family members and commissary. 

It’s a story that mirrors those of many people represented by attorney Rachel White-Domain. The director of the Women & Survivors Project of the Illinois Prison Project said her clients in Logan shouldn’t have to go through that again.

“This will not be a repeat of the Dwight closure horrors,” White-Domain said. “We can learn from those past mistakes and reduce the worst aspects of what happens with these transfers.”

Contact Blair Paddock: @blairpaddock.bsky.social‬ | [email protected]

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