In a rare rebuke of a Democrat-sponsored bill, a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers voted against House Bill 3332, causing the bill to fail on a 49-51 vote. Bills require 60 votes to pass the House, and numerous Democrats voted against the bill or skipped the vote.

A bill that would reform the Prisoner Review Board passed the Illinois Senate on Thursday, aiming to protect victims and increase transparency about prisoner releases following years of controversy surrounding the board’s decisions.

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.

It’s the latest development in a showdown between the Trump administration and the judge who temporarily blocked deportations under an 18th century wartime declaration. President Donald Trump has called for the judge’s impeachment as the Republican escalates his conflict with a judiciary after a series of court setbacks over his executive actions.

Jayden Perkins, an accomplished young dancer, was stabbed to death last March while his mother, Laterria Smith, sustained “multiple life-threatening stab wounds to her neck, back, and chest while desperately trying to protect her children,” according to one of the lawsuits she filed last week.

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.”

“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.

El Salvador President Nayin Bukele confirmed the offer in a post on X, saying El Salvador has “offered the United States of America the opportunity to outsource part of its prison system.”

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.”

The vast majority of the ideas won’t make it to the desk of Gov. J.B. Pritzker or become law, but the list of proposals offers some insights into the issues members of the lower chamber are concerned about as they kick off their new terms in office.

To reduce the number of formerly incarcerated citizens returning to prison, some communities are turning to restorative justice — a practice promoting accountability and healing for all parties affected by crime.

Study after study shows incarcerated education helps do what citizens and policymakers alike say they want: keep people from committing more crimes. However, getting education for many people behind bars remains a challenge.

Ronnie Carrasquillo served nearly 47 years in prison before being released. A new documentary, “In Their Hands,” highlights his journey while raising questions about mass incarceration, the parole system and the meaning of getting a second chance.

Executive clemency is designed to extend mercy and restore opportunity for people who were convicted of crimes and have demonstrated successful rehabilitation. But in Illinois, advocates say that grace has been slow to come for people with criminal records, some of whom are still in prison.