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 49. The youngest parolee was a 27-year-old man sentenced in 2022, and the oldest was a 57-year-old man sentenced in 2014.
The offender who had been incarcerated the longest was Michael R. Howlett. He was convicted in 2014 when he was 47 years old. He is now 57.
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 | 156 | 3.2% | 96.8% | 40.5 |
| St. Clair County | 26 | 11.5% | 88.5% | 40.5 |
| Madison County | 25 | 28% | 72% | 43 |
| Winnebago County | 18 | 11.1% | 88.9% | 32 |
| Lake County | 18 | 16.7% | 83.3% | 36 |
| Kane County | 17 | 5.9% | 94.1% | 41 |
| Will County | 15 | 6.7% | 93.3% | 43 |
| Sangamon County | 14 | 21.4% | 78.6% | 38.5 |
| Macon County | 12 | 16.7% | 83.3% | 43 |
| Peoria County | 10 | 10% | 90% | 40.5 |
| McLean County | 9 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 42 |
| Marion County | 8 | 25% | 75% | 41.5 |
| Randolph County | 8 | 50% | 50% | 43 |
| Coles County | 7 | 0% | 100% | 49 |
| Lasalle County | 7 | 28.6% | 71.4% | 45 |
| McHenry County | 7 | 14.3% | 85.7% | 28 |
| Rock Island County | 7 | 14.3% | 85.7% | 39 |
| DuPage County | 7 | 14.3% | 85.7% | 40 |
| Pike County | 6 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 39.5 |
| Richland County | 6 | 16.7% | 83.3% | 40.5 |
| Montgomery County | 6 | 0% | 100% | 37 |
| Kankakee County | 6 | 0% | 100% | 43.5 |
| Union County | 6 | 16.7% | 83.3% | 40 |
| Jefferson County | 5 | 20% | 80% | 38 |
| Vermilion County | 5 | 0% | 100% | 40 |
| Christian County | 5 | 80% | 20% | 41 |
| Champaign County | 5 | 0% | 100% | 38 |
| Iroquois County | 5 | 0% | 100% | 37 |
| Jersey County | 4 | 25% | 75% | 42.5 |
| Monroe County | 4 | 50% | 50% | 42.5 |
| Lawrence County | 4 | 25% | 75% | 47.5 |
| Franklin County | 4 | 0% | 100% | 37.5 |
| Stephenson County | 4 | 0% | 100% | 42 |
| Fayette County | 4 | 50% | 50% | 50 |
| Effingham County | 4 | 25% | 75% | 31.5 |
| Tazewell County | 4 | 0% | 100% | 35 |
| DeKalb County | 4 | 25% | 75% | 36.5 |
| Crawford County | 4 | 75% | 25% | 41 |
| Williamson County | 4 | 0% | 100% | 45.5 |
| Adams County | 4 | 0% | 100% | 27 |
| Shelby County | 3 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 46 |
| Warren County | 3 | 66.7% | 33.3% | 34 |
| White County | 3 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 37 |
| Whiteside County | 3 | 66.7% | 33.3% | 46 |
| McDonough County | 3 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 45 |
| Carroll County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 50 |
| Cass County | 3 | 66.7% | 33.3% | 51 |
| Clay County | 3 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 38 |
| Edgar County | 3 | 100% | 0% | 35 |
| Fulton County | 3 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 32 |
| Henry County | 3 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 40 |
| Jackson County | 3 | 100% | 0% | 42 |
| Macoupin County | 3 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 35 |
| Bureau County | 3 | 66.7% | 33.3% | 39 |
| Livingston County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 42.5 |
| Clinton County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 42 |
| Calhoun County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 44 |
| Cumberland County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 42.5 |
| Ford County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 37.5 |
| Bond County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 42 |
| Schuyler County | 2 | 100% | 0% | 41.5 |
| Saline County | 2 | 100% | 0% | 39 |
| Greene County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 45 |
| Hancock County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 48.5 |
| Morgan County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 35.5 |
| Knox County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 28 |
| Brown County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 44 |
| Kendall County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 24 |
| Jo Daviess County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 44 |
| Ogle County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 58 |
| Wabash County | 1 | 100% | 0% | 58 |
| Douglas County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 27 |
| Marshall County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 50 |
| Edwards County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 36 |
| Lee County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 39 |
| Pulaski County | 1 | 100% | 0% | 46 |
| Massac County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 30 |
| Hardin County | 1 | 100% | 0% | 30 |
| Gallatin County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 53 |
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