There is little that’s normal about the 2020 election, including the fact that this is the first election cycle in which detainees can cast ballots at Cook County Jail.
Cook County Jail
The Cook County sheriff says an advocate for detainees is lying about what the jail has done to curb the coronavirus. She responds on “Chicago Tonight.”
Through the use of aggressive strategies and widespread testing, the Cook County Sheriff’s Office was able to successfully mitigate the spread of COVID-19 inside the Cook County Jail, according to a new study.
As the number of COVID-19 cases decline at the Cook County Jail, Sheriff Tom Dart announced Monday he would resume allowing in-person family visits for detainees for the first time in months.
According to a new study, cycling through Cook County Jail — a facility once dubbed the “largest-known source” of COVID-19 in the U.S. — is associated with roughly 16% of all documented cases of the virus in Illinois and Chicago through mid-April.
Across the United States, masks have become more and more prevalent. And people with masks – as well as latex gloves – have found their way into more and more crime reports.
The Cook County sheriff is challenging a federal court order that outlines how his office must combat COVID-19 at the Cook County Jail, and called ongoing efforts by activists to get more detainees out of the jail a “waste of resources.”
A 71-year-old man is being held on $1 million bond after he was charged with the criminal sexual assault of his teenage stepdaughter in a home they shared with the girl’s mother, who was working in a COVID-19 clinic.
Jahquez Scott, 21, was found in a home on the city’s West Side on Saturday, days after the FBI announced a $2,000 reward for information leading to his capture.
Sheriff Tom Dart informed Cook County court and elected officials in a letter Thursday that his office has “no additional equipment to assign” after the electronic monitoring program saw a 30% surge in recent months.
Jahquez Scott allegedly escaped using another detainee’s identity
Jahquez Scott, 21, should be considered “armed and dangerous” after he allegedly used the personal information of another detainee who was set to be released from the jail, according to the FBI.
Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart says an expected summer spike in the jail’s detainee population could “upend the delicately balanced housing arrangements currently in place.”
The number of detainees within the Cook County Jail is reaching historic lows during the COVID-19 pandemic. But as that number drops, the number of those being held on electronic monitoring devices has steadily risen.
A look at what’s being done at Cook County Jail to keep people safe and the pandemic’s impact on the criminal justice system. Cook County Public Defender Amy Campanelli and State’s Attorney Kim Foxx join us.
A federal judge will decide whether social distancing and other preventive measures ordered at the Cook County Jail are being properly instituted following calls from criminal justice advocates for additional precautions.
Sheriff's Office also awaiting autopsy results of second officer who died Sunday
Sheila Rivera, 47, had worked with the Cook County Sheriff’s Office since 2012. Rivera and another corrections officer died Sunday. Officials are awaiting autopsy results to see if his death was related to COVID-19.