Dozens of people have died by suicide in Illinois jails in recent years. Advocates say a multipronged approach could prevent such deaths.
incarceration
Posted inInvestigations
Unsanitary, unsupervised, understaffed: Most Illinois jails aren’t meeting minimum state standards
Jails that routinely fail inspections can be referred to the attorney general — but the Department of Corrections hasn’t done so in over a decade.
Posted inInvestigations
Winnebago County guards fire pepperballs more than any other Illinois jail — often on people with mental illnesses
Use of pepperball guns in Illinois jails is not the norm. Of the 90 jails, 11 reported using them in recent years, and 9 others have them on hand. But one, the state’s second-largest county jail, stands out for its repeated use.
Posted inInvestigating Responses
A Mentally Ill Man was Restrained in a Chair for 68 hours at Franklin County Jail, Violating Policies, Report says
One man was restrained for 68 hours, another for 27 hours. Both were mentally ill. The jail’s own policies say restraint should never last more than 10 hours.
An Illinois disability rights watchdog group says the jail violated both its own policies and state standards.
