Latest Post | Last 10 Posts | Archives
Previous Post: Question of the day
Next Post: Succession jockeying
Posted in:
* Oy…
A critical new report says Gov. Pat Quinn’s 2013 closure of Dwight Correctional Center did not improve conditions for the state’s female prisoners.
In a 40-page investigation expected to be formally released Monday, the John Howard Association said moving more than 1,000 female inmates into a former all-male facility in Lincoln hasn’t lived up to assurances Quinn and his staff offered when the cost-cutting plan was revealed in 2012. […]
the Chicago-based organization found there are 1,985 inmates residing in a facility built to house 1,106.
At times, dozens of inmates must bunk in a gymnasium with access to only two bathrooms. The report also noted a shortage of medical staff and not enough beds for mentally ill prisoners.
As an example, the report noted that 646 prisoners were classified as having serious mental illnesses. But, during a November visit by the group, there were fewer than 160 potential beds to treat them.
* From the report’s “Key Observations”…
In 2013, the Quinn administration closed several correctional facilities in the face of severe prison overcrowding, consolidating the majority of its female prison population in Logan, a male medium security prison, without adequate resources to do so or a viable plan to reduce the prison population.
While the Quinn administration argued repurposing Logan would reduce costs and create a more efficient and rehabilitative environment for the state’s female prison population, it has exacerbated overcrowded conditions, damaged IDOC’s capacity to address the needs of female inmates, and failed to generate meaningful cost savings.
Class action federal litigation has challenged the constitutional adequacy of mental health treatment within IDOC. Recent suicides at Logan expose the need to address the lack of mental health resources for the state’s female prison population.
Without significant reductions in Illinois’ female prisoner population, the best that IDOC’s staff and administration can do with Logan is to try to sustain a precarious, ineffective, and expensive status quo.
Ugh.
* The group documented two suicides in 30 days. More on that topic…
Administrators stated during the November 2013 visit that they did not have enough crisis cells, while the facility averaged 13 watches of varying lengths a week. The average length of time on watch was eight days. On the date of the November 2013 visit, there were six women on crisis watch, with four on suicide watch. At that time, there had been 39 instances of suicide watch the month prior, and 192 suicide watches and 20 instances of self-injurious behavior since Logan became a female facility in March 2013. During the July 2014 visit, administrators stated that they started the day with two women in 10-minute watches and three in 15-minute watches. Crisis cells were located on the Mental Health Unit and Healthcare Unit. During the July 2014 visit, we were told that a newly created caged off portion of a R&C X-house wing could also be used for crisis watch. IDOC stated placement would be based on room availability and only in emergent situations with authorization and reported there are currently 11 crisis beds. […]
Mental health staff commented that they house several women who are “cutters,” and when questioned about why certain inmates in mental health housing reported to JHA that they had experienced periods of months without yard, staff stated that this may be because of self-harming behavior where the inmate might but be able to be safe on yard, given a history of banging her head on the walls or cutting. We were also told that there was not electricity in the cells because the women will stick things in sockets. Staff mentioned that one woman had recently swallowed a battery and that several were on “finger foods” meaning they were restricted from using utensils. JHA appreciates the challenges of managing inmates with serious mental illness, but recommends that Logan take steps to ensure that women can be appropriately supervised and not restricted from yard time unnecessarily. As of August 2014, 213 women in various statuses at Logan had yard restrictions of varying lengths.
…Adding… From IDOC…
The Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC) agrees with the John Howard Association (JHA) that the ability to provide programs and services is made difficult by the number of inmates and budget constraints. We share JHA’s goals of fewer inmates and more resources in all prisons. The challenges at Logan Correctional Center are numerous, and IDOC has met many of them; we agree that more must be done. We also point out the following:
Logan Correctional Center is crowded but not overcrowded. It has approximately 1,985 inmates in operational space designed for 2,019. The “built to house” number is obsolete, calculated when prisons assigned one inmate per cell. Illinois, like all states, has for decades housed two inmates in most cells. This and added facilities at Logan CC increased its operational capacity to 2,019.
Safety and security record at Logan is consistently outstanding. IDOC tabulates for fiscal years. The numbers total -1- serious staff assault in 19 months of Logan as an all-female facility and -2- serious inmate-on-inmate assaults in the same long period.
Housing inmates in gym space converted to housing last held “dozens of inmates” for only six weeks this summer. Since mid-August, that number has been between zero and 16 (8/10ths of 1% of Logan’s capacity). Though IDOC’s gym housing is safe and secure, we agree with JHA that gym use is not preferable; it is thus not a significant component of housing at Logan.
IDOC was already moving to dramatically increase care to the seriously mentally ill. $8M in Capital Development Board funs have been released for reconstruction and added facilities at Logan. The increased capacity will be rolled out starting in 2015.
Meaningful cost savings absolutely have occurred as a result of closing Dwight. The numbers for FY13, FY14 and FY15 (with six months projected) back up that statement.
Gross reductions from Dwight: $90,940,787
Maintenance of Dwight: -756,000
Added costs at Logan: -42,000,000
Approximate total savings: $48,184,787This does not factor in the cost of upgrading the aging Dwight facility, had it remained open.
Regarding inmate suicides, the two were committed by seriously mentally ill inmates at Logan this fall and were sad and unfortunate. However, as mental health professionals know, suicide is not completely avoidable among the seriously mentally ill. IDOC doesn’t hesitate to put inmates on suicide watch; these inmates did not present symptoms of risk or ideations of suicide at that time.
Importantly, there had not been a suicide at Logan CC in five years, including the first 1.5 years of its transition to a women’s prison, the most challenging time in such a transition. IDOC’s overall suicide rate is among the lowest in U.S. prison systems (4-6 in each of recent complete calendar years) and its death rate from all causes is 1.61 per 1,000 people—lower than every other comparable-size correctional system in the country, according to federal statistics. The general U.S. population death rate is 8.01 per 1,000 people.
posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Dec 15, 14 @ 12:14 pm
Sorry, comments are closed at this time.
Previous Post: Question of the day
Next Post: Succession jockeying
WordPress Mobile Edition available at alexking.org.
powered by WordPress.
Interesting that it seems to me John Howard takes one of the harshest direct swipes at “Quinn” (vs just IDOC) now that elections are over. I think they take their nonpartisan stance seriously but now there’s no perception of election influence. John Howard Director Maki is on Gov-elect Rauner’s public safety transition team. IDOC developments will be interesting to watch.
Comment by Bebe Monday, Dec 15, 14 @ 12:30 pm
Shame on Quinn and Director Godenez. One can only hope that the Raunerites learn something from this, namely that when slashing costs in IDOC it is very difficult to avoid degrading prison conditions.
Comment by anon Monday, Dec 15, 14 @ 12:33 pm
===takes one of the harshest direct swipes at “Quinn”===
Why not? Closure was Quinn’s idea.
Comment by Rich Miller Monday, Dec 15, 14 @ 12:38 pm
Good thing we sold off Thomson Correctional.
Not like we could use the space or anything.
Comment by Formerly Known As... Monday, Dec 15, 14 @ 12:50 pm
Let’s hope that somebody is taking a look at how many of these prisoners could safely and legally serve their time in the community.
And how many have children who would benefit from their presence in the community.
Comment by Cassandra Monday, Dec 15, 14 @ 1:11 pm
I hardly see how even a 40-page investigation is necessary.
Comment by Milorad Monday, Dec 15, 14 @ 1:50 pm
Let’s step back a couple of years…budget making time in the Spring of 2012. Even with the temp income tax, cuts had to be made and DOC, like a lot of agencies, got trimmed. Don’t forget, in addition to Dwight getting closed, Tamms got shut down too — which is something the John Howard Association called for repeatedly over the years. But in doing so, the DOC had to shuffle the deck and shift inmates to different prisons and repurpose existing facilities to make room for displaced Tamms inmates and the women from Dwight. Logan was one of the prisons affected, but it wasn’t the only one.
This study points to some real problems, no doubt. But John Howard solution is to free inmates on parole when prisons are closed for budgetary reasons — that ain’t gonna fly. And sentencing reform, even if it were to pass, wouldn’t occur fast enough to address a budgetary issue.
Comment by FRG Monday, Dec 15, 14 @ 2:17 pm
I’m going to miss PQ. It’s been like watching the Three Stooges run state government.
Comment by Empty Suit Monday, Dec 15, 14 @ 2:25 pm
Not sure if Bruce is gonna be much better.
Looking at this article, taxes need to go up to build more prisons. Plus it creates jobs.
Comment by Del Clinkton Monday, Dec 15, 14 @ 2:41 pm
We ain’t seen nothing yet, if we cut another 20% out of discretionary spending.
Comment by walker Monday, Dec 15, 14 @ 2:51 pm
One area of discretionary spending I’d like cut is government mandated timeout for smoking pot.
Break the prison unions, end their pensions.
How much do you have to get paid to make a bologna sandwich and toss it at someone? Golden Arches pays minimum wage to do something similar.
Comment by Del Clinkton Monday, Dec 15, 14 @ 3:08 pm
== Break the prison unions, end their pensions ==
The number of downstate Republicans in favor of that proposal would be…zero.
Closing Tamms had nothing to do with crowding at the women’s prison.
Comment by anon Monday, Dec 15, 14 @ 3:16 pm
Is anyone else shocked to discover that when you shut a number of correctional facilities and stuff the inmates into existing facilities, it may create or worsen an overcrowding problem?
Comment by Formerly Known As... Monday, Dec 15, 14 @ 4:49 pm
Buh-bye to admin of big talk but difficulty finding their posteriors with both hands.
Comment by alas Monday, Dec 15, 14 @ 6:16 pm