Tag: jails

Two years after Illinois Answers exposed restraint-chair abuse, jails are doing better

The multi-part investigation, which was published starting in 2024, led to better oversight by the state’s jails-monitoring unit. It has also been cited in federal lawsuits and a new law-enforcement training program.

State standards designed to prevent jail suicides don’t always work

According to records Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority provided in response to Illinois Answers’ public-records request, at least 30 people died by suicide in Illinois jails between 2019 and 2025.

Dozens of deaths in Illinois jails missing from state records

An Illinois Answers Project analysis revealed that 63 people who died in jails were missing from state data on in-custody fatalities. Now the state is auditing its records.