Justin Hammers, Chief of Operations at IDOC | Illinois Department of Corrections oficial website
Justin Hammers, Chief of Operations at IDOC | Illinois Department of Corrections oficial website
The data shows that both of the released offenders among the parolees were men. The median age of the parolees sentenced for property crimes was 48. The younger parolee was a 43-year-old man sentenced in 2013, and the oldest was a 53-year-old man sentenced in 2023.
The offender who had been incarcerated the longest was Joshua L. Ward. He was convicted in 2013 when he was 32 years old. He is now 43.
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 | 386 | 5.2% | 94.8% | 36 |
| Macon County | 40 | 2.5% | 97.5% | 38 |
| Winnebago County | 37 | 8.1% | 91.9% | 37 |
| Peoria County | 33 | 3% | 97% | 40 |
| St. Clair County | 30 | 6.7% | 93.3% | 35.5 |
| Will County | 25 | 4% | 96% | 37 |
| Madison County | 24 | 4.2% | 95.8% | 38.5 |
| Kane County | 20 | 5% | 95% | 44 |
| Lake County | 20 | 10% | 90% | 39.5 |
| Sangamon County | 18 | 5.6% | 94.4% | 41.5 |
| DuPage County | 14 | 14.3% | 85.7% | 37 |
| Tazewell County | 13 | 0% | 100% | 40 |
| Champaign County | 13 | 7.7% | 92.3% | 41 |
| Vermilion County | 12 | 8.3% | 91.7% | 37.5 |
| McLean County | 10 | 10% | 90% | 35.5 |
| Adams County | 10 | 10% | 90% | 48.5 |
| Lasalle County | 8 | 12.5% | 87.5% | 48 |
| Rock Island County | 8 | 12.5% | 87.5% | 45 |
| Marion County | 6 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 49 |
| Kankakee County | 6 | 0% | 100% | 29 |
| Saline County | 5 | 40% | 60% | 33 |
| Knox County | 5 | 0% | 100% | 43 |
| Kendall County | 5 | 0% | 100% | 41 |
| Henry County | 5 | 0% | 100% | 43 |
| Franklin County | 5 | 20% | 80% | 26 |
| McHenry County | 4 | 0% | 100% | 33 |
| Crawford County | 4 | 0% | 100% | 42 |
| Montgomery County | 4 | 25% | 75% | 42.5 |
| Macoupin County | 4 | 25% | 75% | 32.5 |
| Logan County | 4 | 25% | 75% | 40 |
| Perry County | 4 | 0% | 100% | 27 |
| Randolph County | 4 | 0% | 100% | 33 |
| Clinton County | 4 | 25% | 75% | 32 |
| Jefferson County | 4 | 50% | 50% | 43 |
| Stephenson County | 3 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 42 |
| Jackson County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 32 |
| Lee County | 3 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 41 |
| Whiteside County | 3 | 66.7% | 33.3% | 38 |
| DeKalb County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 25 |
| Morgan County | 3 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 33 |
| Williamson County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 27 |
| Shelby County | 2 | 100% | 0% | 32 |
| Cass County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 41 |
| White County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 36 |
| Coles County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 23.5 |
| Ogle County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 48 |
| Boone County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 36.5 |
| Bond County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 42 |
| Woodford County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 34.5 |
| Grundy County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 36.5 |
| Cumberland County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 33.5 |
| Jersey County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 37.5 |
| Hancock County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 61 |
| Henderson County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 42 |
| Greene County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 35 |
| Iroquois County | 1 | 100% | 0% | 39 |
| Jasper County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 48 |
| Wabash County | 1 | 100% | 0% | 29 |
| Brown County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 47 |
| Bureau County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 35 |
| Carroll County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 37 |
| Johnson County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 46 |
| Fulton County | 1 | 100% | 0% | 54 |
| Clay County | 1 | 100% | 0% | 46 |
| Ford County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 50 |
| Richland County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 40 |
| Effingham County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 48 |
| Pulaski County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 40 |
| Pike County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 53 |
| Edgar County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 32 |
| Douglas County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 26 |
| DeWitt County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 57 |
| Mason County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 31 |
| McDonough County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 57 |
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