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 27 men and three women were among the parolees. The median age of the parolees sentenced for crimes against persons was 38. The youngest parolee was a 24-year-old man sentenced in 2023, and the oldest was a 67-year-old man sentenced in 2020.
The offender who had been incarcerated the longest was William P. Smith III. He was convicted in 2019 when he was 36 years old. He is now 42.
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 | 182 | 8.2% | 91.8% | 36.5 |
| Macon County | 30 | 10% | 90% | 37.5 |
| Winnebago County | 30 | 13.3% | 86.7% | 35 |
| St. Clair County | 19 | 5.3% | 94.7% | 39 |
| Kane County | 19 | 10.5% | 89.5% | 42 |
| Will County | 15 | 0% | 100% | 38 |
| Lake County | 15 | 6.7% | 93.3% | 33 |
| Sangamon County | 14 | 7.1% | 92.9% | 43 |
| Madison County | 13 | 7.7% | 92.3% | 35 |
| Peoria County | 13 | 15.4% | 84.6% | 39 |
| McHenry County | 12 | 8.3% | 91.7% | 38 |
| Champaign County | 11 | 27.3% | 72.7% | 39 |
| McLean County | 9 | 11.1% | 88.9% | 39 |
| Tazewell County | 8 | 12.5% | 87.5% | 33 |
| Dupage County | 6 | 0% | 100% | 47 |
| Rock Island County | 6 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 35 |
| Kankakee County | 5 | 0% | 100% | 34 |
| Lasalle County | 4 | 25% | 75% | 40 |
| Jefferson County | 4 | 0% | 100% | 47 |
| Marion County | 4 | 0% | 100% | 44.5 |
| Franklin County | 4 | 25% | 75% | 31 |
| Stephenson County | 4 | 0% | 100% | 33 |
| Vermilion County | 4 | 25% | 75% | 33 |
| Coles County | 4 | 0% | 100% | 33.5 |
| Adams County | 4 | 0% | 100% | 43.5 |
| Livingston County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 38 |
| Macoupin County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 36 |
| Iroquois County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 39 |
| Ogle County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 38 |
| Mason County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 32 |
| Perry County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 39.5 |
| Saline County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 32.5 |
| Schuyler County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 54.5 |
| Williamson County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 44 |
| Lee County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 44.5 |
| Boone County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 29 |
| Christian County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 37.5 |
| Clinton County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 44 |
| Crawford County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 46 |
| Jackson County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 41.5 |
| Henry County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 43.5 |
| Henderson County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 32.5 |
| Greene County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 32.5 |
| DeKalb County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 43.5 |
| Woodford County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 34 |
| Wabash County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 31 |
| Union County | 1 | 100% | 0% | 33 |
| Cumberland County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 45 |
| Effingham County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 25 |
| Fayette County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 41 |
| Fulton County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 25 |
| Randolph County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 37 |
| Putnam County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 37 |
| Johnson County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 30 |
| Moultrie County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 26 |
| Kendall County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 42 |
| Knox County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 50 |
| Lawrence County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 41 |
| Logan County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 43 |
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