East Central Reporter

There was one offender convicted of a crime involving drugs living in Cumberland County released on parole during the first quarter of 2024, according to Illinois Department of Corrections data obtained by the East Central Reporter.

The data shows that the released offender was a man. He was convicted in 2023 when he was 28 years old. He is now 29.

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	117	9.4%	90.6%	37
Macon County	23	4.3%	95.7%	41
Sangamon County	17	5.9%	94.1%	38
Peoria County	17	5.9%	94.1%	42
Madison County	16	18.8%	81.3%	41
Will County	15	20%	80%	41
St. Clair County	15	13.3%	86.7%	40
Champaign County	14	14.3%	85.7%	43.5
Jefferson County	13	7.7%	92.3%	48
Lasalle County	11	27.3%	72.7%	33
McLean County	11	18.2%	81.8%	32
Winnebago County	11	9.1%	90.9%	39
Lake County	10	10%	90%	32.5
Kane County	10	0%	100%	40
Marion County	9	11.1%	88.9%	44
Morgan County	9	22.2%	77.8%	41
Franklin County	8	50%	50%	37.5
McHenry County	8	0%	100%	36
Vermilion County	8	12.5%	87.5%	36
Adams County	8	50%	50%	42.5
DeWitt County	6	33.3%	66.7%	42
Livingston County	5	60%	40%	33
Fayette County	5	20%	80%	45
Union County	5	20%	80%	43
Crawford County	5	40%	60%	43
Pike County	5	60%	40%	31
Henry County	5	20%	80%	29
Tazewell County	5	0%	100%	42
DuPage County	5	0%	100%	29
Lee County	4	0%	100%	34
Macoupin County	4	0%	100%	42.5
Jackson County	4	0%	100%	27.5
Randolph County	4	50%	50%	47
Rock Island County	4	0%	100%	36.5
Effingham County	4	25%	75%	42
Montgomery County	3	0%	100%	42
Clinton County	3	0%	100%	33
Fulton County	3	66.7%	33.3%	34
Knox County	3	66.7%	33.3%	31
Edgar County	3	33.3%	66.7%	36
White County	3	0%	100%	41
Brown County	2	0%	100%	39
Clark County	2	0%	100%	56
Moultrie County	2	0%	100%	35
Perry County	2	100%	0%	37
Piatt County	2	0%	100%	37
Richland County	2	50%	50%	40.5
Saline County	2	100%	0%	31
Shelby County	2	50%	50%	45.5
Coles County	2	0%	100%	39.5
Logan County	2	50%	50%	35.5
Kendall County	2	50%	50%	35.5
Kankakee County	2	50%	50%	50
Douglas County	2	50%	50%	47.5
Johnson County	2	0%	100%	44
Whiteside County	2	0%	100%	38
Iroquois County	2	0%	100%	57
Greene County	2	50%	50%	46
Williamson County	2	0%	100%	41
Bureau County	1	0%	100%	28
Woodford County	1	0%	100%	32
Stark County	1	0%	100%	36
Bond County	1	0%	100%	59
Stephenson County	1	0%	100%	32
Washington County	1	0%	100%	61
Wabash County	1	0%	100%	69
Cass County	1	0%	100%	39
Putnam County	1	0%	100%	42
Pope County	1	0%	100%	31
Christian County	1	0%	100%	35
Menard County	1	0%	100%	25
Clay County	1	0%	100%	31
Cumberland County	1	0%	100%	29
DeKalb County	1	0%	100%	41
Jersey County	1	0%	100%	41
Henderson County	1	0%	100%	55
Hamilton County	1	0%	100%	69
Gallatin County	1	0%	100%	34
Ford County	1	100%	0%	52