Justice In Iroquois County Jail

In August of 2020, ILPRC formed in response to the tragic and preventable deaths of two men detained at Iroquois County Jail. They died within 24 hours of each other. We launched a campaign to demand change in the jail so this never happened again, starting with a petition later that year that secured over 5,000 signatures. Along with family members, community members and advocates, we delivered the petition to the sheriff in January of 2021. This launched our monthly days of action including education days, a “die-in” outside the Attorney General’s office, and a march in Springfield to the Illinois State Police to demand transparency into the investigation of these two deaths. In August of 2021, a full year following the deaths, ISP released a redacted copy of the report into the deaths – giving a small bit of closure for the grieving families.

That fall, ILPRC, supported by nationwide organizers such as Lee Merritt of Grassroots Law Project and Carlene Pinto of NYC Action lab, held a handful of meetings with the Civil Rights Bureau of the Illinois Attorney General’s office, calling attention to the patterns and practices of neglect and abuse within the Iroquois County Jail. The main issues we flagged to the bureau were as follows:
1. Denial of life saving Medical care and gross Medical negligence
2. Lack of training, accountability, and refusal to follow mandated disciplinary actions for Correctional Officers
3. Repeated non-compliance with IDOC County Jail Standards

Read more about the patterns of abuse here: bit.ly/ICJabuse