Stories by Beth Hundsdorfer — Capitol News Illinois

Illinois Secretary of State Helps Launch First-of-Its-Kind State ID Program for People Leaving Cook County Jail Custody

Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart, pictured right, explains how his office will implement a program to offer state IDs to exiting inmates. The program is a collaboration with Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias. (Capitol News Illinois photo by Andrew Adams)

Regardless of how long a detainee stays in jail, however, Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart said a state ID has consistently been at the “top of the list” of needs that those in jail reported to officials upon intake “because it unlocks everything else.”

Choate Director Replaced as New Report Says Abuse at the Facility Hasn’t Stopped

A new report by an advocacy agency details how abuse and neglect at Choate have continued despite calls for and promises of reform.

(Illustration by ProPublica. Source images: Whitney Curtis for ProPublica and Equip for Equality Report.)

The department’s about-face on Choate’s top leader follows months of reporting on poor conditions at the facility by Capitol News Illinois, Lee Enterprises Midwest and ProPublica.

Problems With Abuse, Neglect and Cover-Ups at Choate Extend to Other Developmental Centers in Illinois

Prompted by an outcry over abuse, Illinois proposed moving residents from Choate Mental Health and Developmental Center to similar facilities in the state.

(Alex Bandoni / ProPublica)

People with developmental disabilities living in Illinois’ publicly run institutions have been punched, slapped, hosed down, thrown about and dragged across rooms; in other cases, staff failures contributed to patient harm and death, state police and internal investigative records show.