The outages made it harder to use the shared bathroom, one of the few places they could wash their hands. %PDF-1.3 Help me. That plea, as a mother, is rough to hear.. Ryan is among those trying to help free more prisoners during the pandemic, especially the older people or those with terminal diseases.. He tested positive for COVID-19 around Labor Day. Justin L. Fowler/The State Journal-Register via AP. ILLINOIS HAS JUST CONVERTED FROM AN INDETERMINATE TO A DETERMINATE SENTENCING SYSTEM. This legislation gives the PRB the authority to grant or deny a prisoner early release based on their medical incapacity or terminal illness. The releases follow an April 20 directive from Gov. They say that earned time credits, which allow for early release for low-level offenders, need to be utilized more in light of the ongoing pandemic and high numbers of At UPLC, we are doing our best to stay up to date on the latest COVID-19 developments at IDOC facilities around the state. To see charts broken down by prison. The Illinois Department of Corrections will identify medically vulnerable and elderly prisoners eligible for early release or electronic home monitoring. UNDER THE LAW EFFECTING THIS CHANGE, PRISON TERMS ARE ESTABLISHED FOR SERIOUS OFFENSES AND FOR SUPERVISED RELEASE TERMS, AND PAROLE NO LONGER EXISTS. Editors Note: The print copy and a previous online version of this report contained incorrect information about the status of the constitutional amendment. To provide dignity for all Illinois residents in their final days, HB 3665 allows for the discretionary early release of those who are medically incapacitated or terminally ill and serving time in an Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) facility. But in denying emergency relief last year, U.S. District Judge Robert Dow said there was no convincing reason for a federal court to intrude on the effort by other stakeholders to contain the problem. COVID-19 hospitalizations at Illinois corrections department leave incarcerated peoples loved ones with questions. IDOC has about 1,000 unfilled, budgeted positions, according to the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 31. To donate to our work fighting the spread of coronavirus in Illinois' prisons, click here. 120 S Riverside Plaza, Chicago, IL 60606, United States, Box 6000, Dept F, Rockville, MD 20849, United States. "Governor Pritzker's prioritization of legislative reforms of the criminal justice system reinforces the importance of collaboration among Illinois agencies to cultivate positive change.". The IDOC denied a Tribune open-records request for information about Bourbons death, citing confidentiality exemptions. Inmates with at least nine months of their sentence remaining who are considered low-risk will receive 60 days of good behavior credit, while those considered medium-risk will be awarded 30 days credit. To donate to our work fighting the spread of coronavirus in Illinois' prisons. New questions were being raised Tuesday night about how many inmates have actually been released from state prisons because of the COVID-19 crisis, and A federal judge Friday blocked a bid by state prisoners for an accelerated release or transfer amid the coronavirus, finding state officials current processes dont violate their constitutional rights. (Abel Uribe / Chicago Tribune). Officials knew two weeks ago just what kind of crisis loomed outside the front doors of the sprawling Cook County Jail. Eddie Caumiant, regional director of the union that includes state corrections employees, said the pandemic has exacerbated staffing shortages and some staff work multiple 16-hour double shifts a week., Linda Savage, 64, a nurse at Vienna Correctional Center in downstate Vienna, died Nov. 6, 2020, of complications related to COVID-19. gz mThHw The bill passed 34 to 17 and now heads to the governors desk. He has been living with Bill Ryan, a longtime criminal justice advocate and death penalty abolitionist, since his release. Civil rights lawyers filed a federal suit in April 2020 arguing the risk of spreading COVID-19 in prisons poses catastrophic consequences for prisoners, staff and the communities and hospitals that serve them. This is absolutely a failure by the state, said Jennifer Soble, executive director of the Illinois Prison Project. But more than 30% of those still locked up have a projected mandatory supervised release date before Jan. 1, 2022, meaning they are due to be set free in a year or less anyway, state data shows. J.B. Pritzker and Rob Jeffreys, director of the Illinois Department of Corrections, as defendants. The department says another source of infection is detainees being moved from county jails to prisons. Additionally, (Zbigniew Bzdak / Chicago Tribune), Lester Mason was released from Pontiac Correctional Center on Nov. 25 after spending 39 years in prison for armed robbery, his third such offense. CHICAGO Governor JB Pritzker signed legislation today that creates a path for the compassionate release of medically incapacitated individuals by the Prison Review Board (PRB). 3 0 obj A MONTHLY REPORT GIVING COUNSELOR CASELOADS AND TRANSFERS IS PUBLISHED. Built in the early 1920s and dubbed the roundhouse, the unit was used to quarantine infected inmates. It remains a public health crisis, she said. It was dropped near the main entrance of the prison near Joliet by Jennifer Lackey of Northwestern Universitys Prison Education Program. Watson Gray, 73, died of complications related to COVID-19 on Nov. 6, 2020, at Dixon Correctional Center. Many experts agree the best way to control the virus in prison is to reduce head count. This commitment is at the forefront of our (April 17) In Illinois, the governor signed an executive order that eases the J.B. Pritzker in late June after serving 31 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections, is an artist whose work focuses on his experience as an African American. Inmates with at least nine months of their sentence remaining who are considered low-risk will recei. The department also reopened an old housing unit that was closed in 2016 because of mold, bad plumbing and other issues. But the administration hasnt provided a timeline, said Alyana Alfaro, a spokeswoman for the governor. Activists, inmates and family members discuss the impact of COVID-19 on Illinois jails and prisons, How Gov. Hertzberg has 13 months left on her sentence for marijuana trafficking. The IDOC inmate population has dropped 19% since March to about 30,000, in part because of the nearly 3,000 early releases. Jeffreys said Friday that with the anticipated vaccinations and mitigation strategies, he hopes to put a stop to this virus inside our facilities by late January. Fatalities have been reported in nearly 20 IDOC facilities, with Dixon one of the latest hot spots. The Illinois Department of Corrections and a number of elderly and medically vulnerable prisoners seeking early release from state prisons due to COVID (Family photo). Medical furloughs, which Gov. Matthew Echevarria's photos are displayed at his mother's home in East Dundee on Dec. 4, 2020. The grievance alleges that he languished without meaningful medical intervention and that, after he died, his body was left in the cell for hours. About 1,000 Illinois prison inmates nearing the end of their sentences could soon be released under a settlement announced Tuesday in a federal lawsuit filed as the COVID-19 pandemic was creating a health crisis in state lockups. Advocates for prisoners rights say the states delays in broadening staff testing, releasing thousands of medically vulnerable or other nonviolent prisoners and better enforcing a staff mask mandate have led to widespread infections and more deaths. State Sen. Robert Martwick, D-Chicago, urged his colleagues on the Senate Executive Committee Wednesday to pass the bill so legislators have vehicles for that potential compromise, but warned that he wouldnt let those negotiations stand in the way of the city getting an elected school board. J.B. Pritzker is deploying medics from the Illinois National Guard to the Illinois Department of Corrections facility, where advocates have declared a disaster.. The lawsuit was one of two filed in the early days of the pandemic alleging that Gov. SPRINGFIELD, Ill. - Illinois officials on Monday reported the death of a state prison inmate from COVID-19 and acknowledged the difficulty they face in stopping the spread of the virus in a crowded correctional system. Worldwide there are 11m behind bars, according to Penal Reform International, a pressure group. Governor Juliana Stratton. Alan Mills, executive director of Uptown Peoples Law Center, said prison officials have had the tools to identify and release prisoners who are eligible for years. APPENDIXES, TABULAR INFORMATION, AND FIGURES ARE INCLUDED. "(The prisoners) have provided no convincing reason for a federal court to intrude here and now -- either to issue a blanket order for the release of thousands of inmates or to superimpose a court-mandated and court-superintended process on the mechanisms currently in place to determine which IDOC inmates can and should be safely removed from prison facilities at this time," the judge wrote in his 48-page opinion. LockA locked padlock On April 17th, he commuted the sentences of 7 people in Ohio state prisons. (The Exoneration Project photo). Arkee Chaney shows a painting he made about a childhood memory of his father, at his home in Westchester on Dec. 4, 2020. It was tough., Down to Business: Helping children learn to communicate empowers whole family, speech-language pathologist says, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. As of Monday night, 57 prisoners and 90 staff members were infected with the virus. Some say they should be vaccinated with the same urgency as others in congregate settings, such as nursing homes. I could hear it in his voice, that he was close, said Susan Hertzberg, as quoted in a petition her lawyer filed with the state seeking early release. But state Rep. Deanne Mazzochi, R-Elmhurst, called the language of the amendment problematic, saying that the actual meaning of the provision might be left up to the Illinois Supreme Court. On January 13th, state legislators approved a colossal 764-page police and criminal justice reform bill that includes major changes, such as ending the practice of cash bail and money bonds, requiring all officers across Illinois to wear body cameras, and easing restrictions placed on those convicted of lesser charges. As a result of this settlement, prison officials will finally begin to address this issue.. A new point of contention is where prisoners will be on the vaccine distribution list. Chaney, who was granted a sentence commutation by Gov. Their complaints echo a survey conducted in April and early May by the John Howard Association, a prison watchdog group. INSTEAD, THERE IS A FIXED RELEASE DATE, ASSUMING GOOD TIME IS SERVED, SET BY LAW AT THE BEGINNING OF THE PRISON TERM. The couples daughter, Julie Rittenbaugh, thinks her father caught the virus while receiving chemotherapy for cancer in the prisons medical unit. The Illinois legislature has provided IDOC with significant discretion to release people, and it should continue to do so, Bedi said. On March 17th, civil rights groups signed an open letter to Governor Pritzker with demands related to prisoners in light of the COVID-19 outbreak in Illinois. Jeffreys said the outbreak mitigation program is in place at nine prisons, with several more planned. (Family photo). Read more here! The union instead proposed that it will continue to educate staff, in the hope that more staff will agree to vaccinate voluntarily. Groups that track national virus data for state and federal prisons, such as the COVID Prison Project and The Marshall Project, place Illinois about average on lists comparing infections based on inmate populations, but Illinois has one of the higher death tolls. Bronis' son, Matthew Echevarria, is incarcerated at Menard Correctional Center. But a coalition of advocacy groups that sued the state over the issue said the IDOC should free thousands more who are either old, infirm, nonviolent or near the end of their sentences. Staffers are expected to be prioritized with those in the health care field and other first responders. Lester Mason, 76, at the home of his nephew in East Peoria on Dec. 14, 2020. UPLC is tracking COVID-19 cases in IDOC. And a dangerous backlog of people in county jails awaiting transfer would be reduced. The roundhouse remains in use today. His cellmate filed a written grievance seeking an investigation into the staffs handling of the matter. WebActions to Reduce Population and Maximize Space. xWn6+f"E^,"zhzXYE6I~T8B=BSg73tOG##LXEO}n 1mRaIm2%.yM 7{j ! 8zvv|i(8 F+A17qnR=!ZupvWTu]=$n#noOzN"D,?DoW8}'^\ Early release from prison is sometimes As the new COVID-19 surge continues racing through Illinois prisons, with a disturbing rise in inmate deaths in November plus the states first staff fatality, corrections officials said they will start to test all prison employees for the virus regardless of whether the workers have symptoms. In the grievance, Tommy Ryburn, 61, said Bourbon had constant vomiting and diarrhea and was often too weak to get out of bed to take his medication or insulin shots. The testing is expected to be in place systemwide by late January. "It's only fitting that his death in prison, though tragic and unnecessary given the many who loved him, will help to restore dignity and humanity to incarcerated people and their families. Up to 60 days will be given in the next month to prisoners deemed low and medium risk, the settlement states. As of Monday, more than 10,800 state inmates and 4,200 staff members had tested positive for the virus, according to IDOC statistics posted online. WebGovernors in at least 11 states have issued executive orders that block new transfers into state prisons, allow early release for some prisoners, or both. A man incarcerated at the Stateville Correctional Center in Crest Hill is among eight new deaths from the Coronavirus in Illinois, and 18 other inmates were taken to AMITA Health Saint Joseph Medical Center in Joliet, officials said. A day later, Gray died of complications related to COVID-19. The settlement also calls for the department to apply good behavior credits to inmates who are eligible for those credits and have at least nine months left on their sentence. Jeffreys said the IDOC follows federal and state public health pandemic guidelines. People In Jails, Prisons Will Be Vaccinated In Next Phase, State Confirms After Advocates Push, Jail, Prison Populations Must be Among First to Get COVID-19 Vaccine: Advocacy Groups, COVID-19 cases and deaths are surging again in Illinois prisons, as inmates and advocates call for more action, Prioritizing Vaccines for Prisoners is Good Public Policy, Illinois to expand testing of prison workers as inmate deaths, infections surge, Forgotten: Stateville inmates warn of rising COVID-19 outbreak behind bars, Lawsuit: Illinois Prisons Are Failing To Protect Inmates From COVID-19, Lawsuit: Pritzker, IDOC Failed to Protect Vulnerable Inmates from COVID-19. J.B. Pritzker last week claims that the states prison system has failed to protect medically vulnerable prisoners from COVID-19. (WBEZ has agreed to not identify the prisoner by his real name. As PLN has reported extensively in the past, while most states and the federal government have medical release laws on the books, sick prisoners still generally die in (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune). Speaking to the Senate panel on Friday, Jeffreys said strategies developed for the Stateville outbreak, such as deep cleaning, temperature checks, contact tracing and masking staff and inmates, have been duplicated systemwide. Legislators designed the The IDOC administration, he said, has tried to be responsive. It was tough., Down to Business: Helping children learn to communicate empowers whole family, speech-language pathologist says, Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information. Recently, Governor Pritzker announced that all staff working in Illinois prisons will have to be vaccinated for COVID-19 by mid-October. The legislation was named after Joe Coleman, a father, decorated veteran, and active member in his community who had terminal cancer. He was scared to death. More than 1,000 prisoners in Illinois are set to be released after a lawsuit settlement aimed at protecting medically vulnerable prisoners from COVID-19. Five days later, a 65-year-old sex offender from Rockford, Larry Bourbon, succumbed to the virus in his prison bunk. The couple, who had not seen each other since being imprisoned, were allowed a final phone call before he died. That is the highest figure ever. House Bill 3665, also known as the Joe Coleman Medical Release Act, reflects the administration's commitment to bringing about true, meaningful reform in the justice system. "Too many seriously ill people in prisons are getting substandard medical care at exorbitant cost to the state," said State Representative Will Guzzardi (D- Chicago). I'm sorry we couldn't afford this mercy to Joe Coleman, but I'm proud that we'll be able to do so for hundreds of other Illinoisans now that this bill is signed into law. The first prison inmates to go home under Illinois new early release program could be out within a month, the director of the state Corrections Department said Monday. J.B. Pritzkers failure to release vulnerable prisoners from overcrowded facilities will cost unnecessary loss of life behind bars and in surrounding communities, say advocates and medical professionals. At a recent state Senate committee hearing, acting IDOC Director Rob Jeffreys acknowledged the high numbers, which he blamed in part on increased testing and said mirrors state and national trends. At least 153 inmates and 147 staffers in Illinois state prisons are currently diagnosed with the novel coronavirus, according to the Illinois Department of Corrections. stream ", "Joe spent his life in service of others from his time in the military to his time in prison," said Jennifer Soble, Executive Director, Illinois Prison Project. It brought our whole agency together and made us laser-focused to carry out our objectives as we combat this virus.. He said the department has responded aggressively to a challenging public health crisis that has yet to yield. But, between mid-August and mid-October, the cumulative number of inmate infections more than tripled and total staff cases more than doubled. The tragedy is the number of people who have become sick and died. J.B. Pritzker through executive clemency. To date, 20% of inmates across the $1.6 billion corrections system have tested positive since March. In cases of medical In addition, the state agreed that IDOC will continue to identify and evaluate medically vulnerable prisoners for release through legally available mechanisms, according to the terms of the settlement. Lester Mason, 76, at the home of his nephew in East Peoria on Dec. 14, 2020. Already approved by the state Senate, it will go before voters, appearing on Illinois ballot in 2022. Herman Townsell, who spent 71/2 years in prison for a 1994 home invasion, kidnapping and sexual assault of a 14-year-old girl and has been in and out of prison As of mid-December, about 400 employees were out sick and up to 100 more are usually out waiting for test results. He had three disciplinary tickets in four decades for minor infractions, said his lawyer, Soble. Under the settlement, the Department of Corrections agreed to "identify and evaluate medically vulnerable prisoners for release through legally available mechanisms." Gray is one of at least 60 incarcerated people who have died since March after becoming infected with the new coronavirus in Illinois custody a death toll that has doubled since November, state data through Dec. 22 shows. Read it here! Prisons in Illinois, nationally face staff shortages as correction officers quit amid COVID. Press Release - Tuesday, February 21, 2023 ChicagoGovernor JB Pritzker today announced he will join the Reproductive Freedom Alliance (RFA), a non-partisan group of state Governors focused on working alongside one another to identify best practices for legislative and executive (Youngrae Kim / Chicago Tribune). The advocates accuse the governor of dragging his feet in the face of a pandemic, putting prisoners and staff at greater risk. Federal sentencing and prison experts Maureen Baird, Mark H. Allenbaugh, and Alan Ellis evaluate the effectiveness of the First Step Act, a bipartisan bill passed in 2018. The man was imprisoned at Stateville Correctional Center, where officials say there are now 12 men who are hospitalized, "including several requiring ventilators.". Bronis' son, Matthew Echevarria, is incarcerated at Menard Correctional Center. "What we've accomplished is really working with the state to make sure that they're doing everything they can to utilize the avenues available to them, where it's safe and appropriate to do so, to be releasing folks or to transferring them over to home detention, particularly those who are getting out soon anyway," Antholt, who works for Equip for Equality, said in a phone interview Tuesday. More than 1,000 medically vulnerable or elderly inmates in Illinois prisons are set to be released following a settlement agreement in a lawsuit brought last spring against the head of the Illinois Department of Corrections and Gov. J.B. Pritker for failure to protect the health and safety of those in prison from COVID-19, outside the Thompson Center in Chicago on Dec. 15, 2020. Republican state Rep. Deanne Marie Mazzochi. Zach LaVine finished with a game-high 41 points, DeMar DeRozan added 21 and Patrick Beverley had a double-double with 10 rebounds and 10 assists. Releasing inmates "requires a process that gives close attention to detail, for the safety of each inmate, his or her family, and the community at large demands a sensible and individualized release plan -- especially during a pandemic," the opinion continued. McDonald questions whether her son received prompt medical attention. In letters and interviews, men inside the facility describe conditions they say are continuing to drive infections at the Illinois prison hardest hit by coronavirus. On April 2, 2020, in response to the swiftly spreading coronavirus epidemic in Illinois' prisons, a consortium of the area's leading civil rights attorneys and community advocates filed three cases seeking release of prisoners. The amendment would also ensure the right to bargain will not be diminished by any future law, proponents said. To put the numbers in perspective, there were fewer than 700 known infections of inmates and staff across IDOC from March to early August, when the latest surge began. J.B. Pritzker and the Illinois Department of Corrections, demanding the immediate release of Illinois prisoners vulnerable to the coronavirus. An Illinois lawmaker and a county sheriff are raising fresh concerns about Gov. Dr. John Raba, the court-appointed monitor in a federal consent decree case regarding inmate health care, began pushing in August for the testing of all staff. That means prison medical copays must go. They work tremendously hard under really difficult circumstances, Caumiant said. Photos: Northwestern loses to Penn State 68-65 in overtime, Nick Niego is back as Brother Rice stuns St. Rita. They dont they didnt get that opportunity.. Alan Mills, executive director of the Uptown Peoples Law Center, said that if IDOC strictly followed its protocols requiring quarantine periods and negative test results, the jail transfers should not be an issue. Watson Gray, 73, died of complications related to COVID-19 on Nov. 6, 2020, at Dixon Correctional Center. Amanda Antholt, one of the attorneys representing the prisoners, said the settlement will likely affect up to 1,200 inmates across Illinois prisons. She said that while the number of prisoners who will be released was significant, there are thousands more who have a legal mechanism to seek release and should get it. Sheila Bedi, of Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law, said that releasing some prisoners back to their communities is the best way to protect the health and well-being of people in prison. J.B. Pritzker in late June after serving 31 years in the Illinois Department of Corrections, is an artist whose work focuses on his experience as an African American. For weeks, two houses in Illinois Vienna Correctional Center ran on generator power and had intermittent failures. She said prison officials did not notify her or Wilsons wife that he was hospitalized until the family made repeated phone calls. RECORDKEEPING PRACTICES DIFFER IN EACH AREA OF ILLINOIS' PAROLE DISTRICTS. J.B. Pritzker could help the effort with the stroke of a pen. ), Gov. The demands include early release of: prisoners due to be paroled within 120 days; those with viable clemency petitions; those who are pregnant, postpartum, or living with their infants; and those who have health conditions, including the elderly. Some politicians question states priorities. Chaney, who was granted a sentence commutation by Gov. Every day I thought my son was going to die, said Bronis, of East Dundee. People incarcerated in Illinois will be among those vaccinated against coronavirus during the next phase, according to a newly released state plan. Her husband, Terry, said she said was a gifted nurse with a tender heart. She loved camping, travel, flea markets and yard sales. At a Georgia state House of Representatives hearing on prison conditions in September, a corrections officer called in to testify, interrupting his shift to tell lawmakers how dire conditions had become. The one prison worker known to have died of the disease was Linda Savage, a 64-year-old nurse at Vienna Correctional Center. Vaccinating prisoners is good public policy. ", [{"code":"en","title":"Illinois' Virtual Agent","message":"Hello"},{"code":"es","title":"Agente virtual de Illinois","message":"Hola"}]. Denice Bronis gets emotional while discussing her fears about her son's health at her home in East Dundee, Dec. 4, 2020. In cases of medical incapacity, individuals may not be terminally ill, but in a state that renders them no longer a threat to the community. Official websites use .gov In addition to providing personal protective equipment and cleaning supplies, the department long ago halted in-person visits, imposed a staff mask mandate and restricted prisoners to their cells with few exceptions, such as showering. People incarcerated in jails and prisons will be prioritized for vaccines along with people who are 65 and older, certain essential workers and people experiencing homelessness or residing in shelters, according to the plan released Dec. 31 by the state health department. WebPRISON-RELEASE DISCRETION AND PRISON POPULATION SIZE STATE REPORT: ILLINOIS 4 general population, for an average incremental downturn of -51 per 100,000.4 COVID-19 continues to have a devastating effect on one of Chicagos most vulnerable congregate populations: jail and prison detainees. "I am proud that Illinois is leading with compassion and bringing a restorative justice lens to criminal justice policy making. On April 2, 2020, in response to the swiftly spreading coronavirus epidemic in Illinois' prisons, a consortium of the area's leading civil rights attorneys and community advocates filed three cases seeking release of prisoners. An early release law is a state criminal law that allows a prisoner to be released before the end of their prison term. Gov. J.B. Pritzker and IDOC had dragged their feet on identifying vulnerable prisoners eligible for early release, putting detainees, prison staff and the public at greater risk of severe illness and death. Since then, the total number of infections has risen by more than 9,000 cases, state data shows. Under current law, terminally ill or mentally incapacitated prisoners who wish to be released to the care of family in their final days must rely on a commutation from the governor. In total, more than 10,000 inmates and staff have tested positive from the start of the pandemic. Echevarria was a Chicago high school student when police arrested him in a 1999 fatal shooting he insists he did not commit. J.B. Pritzker through executive clemency. Pritzker could slow the spread of COVID-19 at Cook County Jail, Prisons worldwide risk becoming incubators of covid-19, Pritzker criticized over quiet commutations, not releasing medically vulnerable, Request for broad prisoner release untenable on class-wide basis, Ill. Judge Won't Expedite Prisoners' Release Amid COVID-19, Federal judge declines to step in and order Illinois to release more inmates in the face of COVID-19 threat, PRISONERS IN ILLINOIS DESCRIBE DIRE CONDITIONS AMID CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK, Pritzker Signs Executive Order Allowing Prisoner Furloughs, Pritzker Signs Executive Order Allowing Medical Furlough for IDOC Inmates, Activists Fight to Prevent Virus Spread in Prison Petri Dishes, As COVID-19 Spreads, Advocates Sound Alarm For People In Prisons And The Communities Around Them, As COVID-19 Spreads, Advocates Sound Alarm For People in Prisons And The Communities Around Them, Stateville prison outbreak signals COVID-19 threat to inmates, surrounding hospital systems, Illinois prisons and rural healthcare systems facing crisis due to slow COVID-19 response, Pritzker named in suit to free prisoners at risk of COVID-19, Civil Rights Attorneys Launch Legal Challenge to Free Prisoners At Risk of Coronavirus, 1st Illinois prison inmate dies of COVID-19, health officials say, Group Calls On State To Release Inmates After COVID-19 Death At Stateville Prison, Stateville inmates with Coronavirus taken to Saint Joseph Medical Center, Alarm grows as Cook County, state struggle with what to do with the incarcerated in the face of COVID-19, Illinois inmate dies from COVID-19; dozens more sickened, Jails and prisons could become coronavirus disaster. 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