Stories by Blair Paddock

Uptown People’s Law Center and Equip for Equality filed a class action lawsuit against IDOC Director Latoya Hughes on behalf of the nearly 13,000 people with mental illness in the state’s prisons — approximately 44% of the population.

The last men incarcerated at Stateville Correctional Center have been transferred out of the aging facility as of Monday, bringing the 100-year-old prison to a close, according to the Illinois Department of Corrections.

Disability rights group Equip for Equality filed a motion Thursday for a preliminary injunction to immediately transfer the last 12 men incarcerated at Stateville Correctional Center out of the facility.

Illinois’ prison population continues to shrink, with facilities now having a 26% vacancy rate, leading some of those inside and their advocates to question the state’s plan to build two new prisons.

Disability rights group Equip for Equality filed a lawsuit alleging the men still incarcerated at Stateville Correctional Center are living in “unduly restrictive and isolating conditions compared to prisoners without disabilities, because of their disabilities.”

Those who advocate for the restorative justice model say reducing the types of cases that are referred would cut back on the rehabilitation opportunities. The State’s Attorney’s Office says they prefer alternative approaches that move away from the peace circle and instead toward gun education and a path toward FOID cards.

“We thought the best way to get into the conversation was to bypass all of the stereotypical conversations that people imagine having with people serving long-term sentences and really dive into questions that no one asks them,” said Melissa Lorraine, director and co-founding artistic director of Theatre Y.

Correctional workers and Republican lawmakers have said exposure to synthetic cannabinoids in IDOC facilities has led to hospital visits and impacted prisons across the state. One man incarcerated at Hill Correctional Center said moving away from paper mail would have “devastating consequences.”

At issue is concerns over drug exposures tied to physical mail and whether paper should be digitally scanned for incarcerated people. That debate may be over as IDOC signed a contract in October that will give the department the ability to scan physical mail and deliver digital copies, according to the contract obtained by WTTW News through a Freedom of Information Act request.

Mayor Johnson says alderpeople should stop throwing tantrums and start negotiating the budget seriously. And disgraced former Ald. Danny Solis takes the stand in Michael Madigan’s historic corruption trial.

To gain insight into the impact of prison closures, WTTW News looked back on the last prison the state shut down: Dwight Correctional Center. We spoke to both currently and formerly incarcerated women and correctional workers, as well as researchers and lifelong residents in the surrounding village.

Michael Broadway, 51, died in June while in custody of the Illinois Department of Corrections. A new lawsuit alleges IDOC and Wexford Health Sources ignored Broadway’s requests for medical attention.

A group of about 40 incarcerated women read their poetry at the “Live and Alive From Inside” poetry slam, put on by the Women’s Justice Institute.

Prisons in Illinois are currently facing a staffing crisis, according to a new report from the John Howard Association. It found understaffing greatly increases the amount of lockdowns and staff overtime and impacts the overall health, safety and well-being of staff and incarcerated people.

Stateville had robust higher educational programs, partnering with five Chicago-area universities. After the transfers, some students have been split from their classmates and are now hundreds of miles away from each other. Those divisions and distances now make it difficult for educators to reach students.

The class, based out of the school’s Evanston campus, traveled to meet with students incarcerated at Stateville Correctional Center in Crest Hill, where the two groups were tasked with collaborating on a documentary.

Judge Andrea R. Wood wrote that the court found a probable risk of irreparable harm from falling concrete attributed to the deteriorated masonry walls, ceilings, steel beams and window lintels at Stateville Correctional Center.

ShotSpotter meets its demise in Chicago — despite the wishes of City Council. And CPS sets a vision for its future, but is that a future without the current CEO?

Michael Broadway, incarcerated at Stateville Correctional Center, died in custody in June; the days before his death were some of the hottest that month. An autopsy report reveals that heat stress was one of the significant contributing factors in his death.

Conditions at Stateville Correctional Center are so uninhabitable that a federal judge ordered most of the population out by the end of September. WTTW News sent questions to men incarcerated at Stateville to hear how they feel about the shuttering of the prison and the state building a new facility.

Workers are continuing their protest over the state’s plan to close and rebuild Stateville Correctional Center, citing concerns over safety and job stability.

The court filed the preliminary injunction order Friday, with Judge Andrea R. Wood writing that the court found a probable risk of irreparable harm from falling concrete attributed to the deteriorated masonry walls, ceilings, steel beams and window lintels at Stateville.

“Right now, there’s over 420 residents at Stateville who are at risk of dire injury due to the structural vulnerabilities, degradation and deterioration of those buildings that put them at risk of serious physical injury,” said Heather Lewis Donnell, a partner at Loevy and Loevy.

At an event in Homan Square, panelists ranging from youth violence prevention organizers to people who work in banking shared how they’re trying to curb violence in the city.

Relatives and friends are questioning the circumstances surrounding the death of 51-year-old Michael Broadway. An IDOC spokesperson said the agency is “actively investigating.”

Timely care is essential for many nursing home residents. New federal staffing standards from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services are aimed at improving access to care, but some advocates say the measures don’t do enough.