South Cook News

There were 160 offenders convicted of drug crimes living in Cook County released on parole during the first quarter of 2023, according to Illinois Department of Corrections data obtained by the South Cook News.

The data shows that 152 men and eight women were among the parolees. Of the parolees sentenced for drug crimes, one was a veteran, and the median age was 40. The youngest parolee was a 21-year-old man sentenced in 2022, and the oldest was a 80-year-old man sentenced in 1995.

The offender who had been incarcerated the longest was Alex Gutierrez. He was convicted in 2007 when he was 25 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	160	5%	95%	40
Madison County	19	5.3%	94.7%	38
Winnebago County	18	5.6%	94.4%	32.5
Peoria County	17	17.6%	82.4%	42
Macon County	16	12.5%	87.5%	39
Will County	14	0%	100%	37.5
St. Clair County	12	16.7%	83.3%	42
Lake County	12	8.3%	91.7%	33.5
Kane County	11	0%	100%	38
Dupage County	10	10%	90%	37
Tazewell County	9	11.1%	88.9%	35
Champaign County	9	22.2%	77.8%	38
Rock Island County	8	12.5%	87.5%	35
Jefferson County	7	14.3%	85.7%	43
McLean County	7	0%	100%	42
Crawford County	7	42.9%	57.1%	43
Randolph County	6	33.3%	66.7%	39.5
Sangamon County	6	0%	100%	34
Kankakee County	6	16.7%	83.3%	53
Kendall County	6	16.7%	83.3%	27.5
McHenry County	5	20%	80%	33
Marion County	5	0%	100%	38
Grundy County	5	40%	60%	37
Hancock County	5	20%	80%	44
Coles County	5	20%	80%	45
Lasalle County	5	40%	60%	44
Morgan County	4	25%	75%	37.5
Macoupin County	4	0%	100%	42
Pike County	4	75%	25%	40
Adams County	4	25%	75%	32.5
Jackson County	3	33.3%	66.7%	32
Williamson County	3	0%	100%	40
Lee County	3	33.3%	66.7%	44
Livingston County	3	33.3%	66.7%	36
Logan County	3	0%	100%	30
Henry County	3	0%	100%	38
Fulton County	3	0%	100%	41
Franklin County	3	33.3%	66.7%	36
Effingham County	3	66.7%	33.3%	38
Cass County	3	0%	100%	52
Clinton County	2	0%	100%	30
Calhoun County	2	50%	50%	47
Stephenson County	2	0%	100%	41.5
Boone County	2	0%	100%	40.5
Vermilion County	2	0%	100%	50.5
Wayne County	2	0%	100%	33.5
Alexander County	2	0%	100%	42.5
Woodford County	2	0%	100%	35.5
Knox County	2	50%	50%	36.5
Jasper County	2	50%	50%	30
Marshall County	2	0%	100%	43
Massac County	2	0%	100%	31.5
Edgar County	2	0%	100%	54
Menard County	2	0%	100%	35
Monroe County	2	0%	100%	39
DeKalb County	2	0%	100%	47
Moultrie County	1	0%	100%	32
Lawrence County	1	100%	0%	45
Piatt County	1	0%	100%	41
Whiteside County	1	0%	100%	43
White County	1	0%	100%	26
Christian County	1	100%	0%	53
Wabash County	1	100%	0%	33
Pulaski County	1	0%	100%	41
Union County	1	0%	100%	30
DeWitt County	1	0%	100%	60
Montgomery County	1	100%	0%	52
Bureau County	1	0%	100%	44
Shelby County	1	0%	100%	52
Schuyler County	1	100%	0%	59
Richland County	1	100%	0%	64
Carroll County	1	0%	100%	38