Sophia Manuel, Policy Advisor for Reform Initiatives at IDOC | Illinois Department of Corrections oficial website
Sophia Manuel, Policy Advisor for Reform Initiatives at IDOC | Illinois Department of Corrections oficial website
The data shows that all of the released offenders among the parolees were men. The median age of the parolees sentenced for drug crimes was 47. The youngest parolee was a 26-year-old man sentenced in 2021, and the oldest was a 65-year-old man sentenced in 2022.
The offender who had been incarcerated the longest was Jerry E. Belt. He was convicted in 2019 when he was 57 years old. He is now 61.
Commonly referred to as parole in Illinois, Mandatory Supervised Release (MSR) is a post-prison supervision period, in which individuals must follow specific rules like check-ins with parole officers; violations can lead to re-incarceration. Unlike parole, MSR is automatically required for all individuals released after serving a prison sentence.
In 2023, Gov. JB Pritzker signed a bill to reform Illinois’ Mandatory Supervised Release program. The law aims to reduce recidivism and reportedly create a more effective and equitable supervision system by incentivizing education, streamlining the review process, and expanding virtual check-ins.
“Our current supervision system too often operates unfairly, with rules that make it simply a revolving door back to jail,” Pritzker said at a bill signing ceremony in Chicago. “In fact, more than 25% of people who are released from prison in Illinois end up back behind bars, not because they’re recidivists, but instead for a noncriminal technical violation.”
A 2018 report from the Illinois Sentencing Policy Advisory Council indicated that 43% of released prisoners in Illinois return to prison within three years, costing taxpayers an estimated $152,000 per recidivism event.
| County | Total Number of Parolees | % Women | % Men | Median age |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cook County | 136 | 4.4% | 95.6% | 39.5 |
| Macon County | 23 | 17.4% | 82.6% | 39 |
| Winnebago County | 19 | 5.3% | 94.7% | 35 |
| St. Clair County | 19 | 26.3% | 73.7% | 39 |
| Madison County | 18 | 22.2% | 77.8% | 39.5 |
| Will County | 15 | 6.7% | 93.3% | 36 |
| McLean County | 15 | 6.7% | 93.3% | 44 |
| Peoria County | 14 | 28.6% | 71.4% | 45 |
| Sangamon County | 12 | 8.3% | 91.7% | 40 |
| Kane County | 12 | 8.3% | 91.7% | 35 |
| Adams County | 11 | 18.2% | 81.8% | 40 |
| Champaign County | 11 | 27.3% | 72.7% | 40 |
| Lake County | 10 | 20% | 80% | 37 |
| Franklin County | 10 | 20% | 80% | 46.5 |
| McHenry County | 9 | 11.1% | 88.9% | 40 |
| Rock Island County | 9 | 0% | 100% | 47 |
| Pike County | 8 | 25% | 75% | 41.5 |
| Tazewell County | 8 | 37.5% | 62.5% | 36 |
| Lasalle County | 8 | 25% | 75% | 32 |
| Henry County | 8 | 25% | 75% | 36 |
| Kankakee County | 8 | 12.5% | 87.5% | 31 |
| Jefferson County | 8 | 0% | 100% | 40 |
| Morgan County | 7 | 0% | 100% | 42 |
| Marion County | 7 | 14.3% | 85.7% | 34 |
| Christian County | 7 | 14.3% | 85.7% | 30 |
| Knox County | 7 | 28.6% | 71.4% | 39 |
| Vermilion County | 6 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 40 |
| Kendall County | 6 | 16.7% | 83.3% | 30.5 |
| Coles County | 6 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 31.5 |
| Crawford County | 6 | 50% | 50% | 34.5 |
| Shelby County | 5 | 40% | 60% | 33 |
| Macoupin County | 5 | 20% | 80% | 37 |
| White County | 5 | 80% | 20% | 45 |
| Lawrence County | 4 | 25% | 75% | 47.5 |
| DuPage County | 4 | 0% | 100% | 45 |
| Bond County | 4 | 25% | 75% | 29 |
| Randolph County | 4 | 75% | 25% | 42.5 |
| Mason County | 4 | 0% | 100% | 37.5 |
| Clinton County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 48 |
| Montgomery County | 3 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 39 |
| Effingham County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 47 |
| Bureau County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 34 |
| Jersey County | 2 | 100% | 0% | 47 |
| Piatt County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 36 |
| Douglas County | 2 | 100% | 0% | 44.5 |
| Richland County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 45.5 |
| Saline County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 30.5 |
| Williamson County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 34 |
| Stephenson County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 39.5 |
| Union County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 35 |
| Wabash County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 38 |
| Warren County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 40 |
| Whiteside County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 45 |
| Johnson County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 41 |
| Hancock County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 58.5 |
| Grundy County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 36.5 |
| Livingston County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 29 |
| Fayette County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 37 |
| Marshall County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 46 |
| Perry County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 38.5 |
| Jo Daviess County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 57 |
| Carroll County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 55 |
| Jackson County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 38 |
| Moultrie County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 39 |
| Wayne County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 37 |
| Washington County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 39 |
| Pulaski County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 41 |
| Greene County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 40 |
| Gallatin County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 46 |
| Menard County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 43 |
| DeKalb County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 53 |
| Fulton County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 38 |
| Boone County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 48 |
| Cass County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 26 |
| Schuyler County | 1 | 100% | 0% | 29 |
| DeWitt County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 41 |
| Edwards County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 46 |
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