South Cook News

There were 127 offenders convicted of drug crimes living in Cook County who were released on parole during the first quarter of 2025, according to Illinois Department of Corrections data obtained by the South Cook News.

Of the parolees, 116 were men and 11 were women, with a median age of 40. The youngest parolee was a 21-year-old man sentenced in 2023, and the oldest was a 71-year-old man sentenced in 2024.

The offender incarcerated the longest was Raymond Cedeno. He was convicted in 2010 when he was 50 years old. He is now 65.

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 reincarceration. 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	127	8.7%	91.3%	40
Winnebago County	26	7.7%	92.3%	44
Macon County	26	3.8%	96.2%	43.5
Peoria County	22	22.7%	77.3%	41.5
Kane County	21	28.6%	71.4%	37
Will County	17	0%	100%	34
Sangamon County	15	13.3%	86.7%	37
DuPage County	15	0%	100%	38
St. Clair County	14	7.1%	92.9%	35.5
McLean County	14	14.3%	85.7%	40.5
Champaign County	14	28.6%	71.4%	43.5
Madison County	13	53.8%	46.2%	42
Lake County	12	0%	100%	33.5
Lasalle County	11	27.3%	72.7%	36
Adams County	10	10%	90%	43
Tazewell County	10	30%	70%	36.5
Jefferson County	10	10%	90%	34
Rock Island County	9	11.1%	88.9%	45
Knox County	8	25%	75%	41.5
Kankakee County	7	14.3%	85.7%	46
Fayette County	7	14.3%	85.7%	40
McHenry County	7	0%	100%	40
Livingston County	7	14.3%	85.7%	41
Kendall County	6	0%	100%	41
Fulton County	5	0%	100%	40
Macoupin County	5	60%	40%	47
Crawford County	4	25%	75%	37
Logan County	4	25%	75%	37.5
Marion County	4	25%	75%	40.5
Mason County	4	50%	50%	41.5
Montgomery County	4	25%	75%	39.5
Boone County	4	25%	75%	43
Vermilion County	4	0%	100%	35
DeKalb County	3	33.3%	66.7%	40
Williamson County	3	0%	100%	40
Wayne County	3	66.7%	33.3%	46
Coles County	3	33.3%	66.7%	39
Union County	3	33.3%	66.7%	31
Stephenson County	3	0%	100%	49
Shelby County	3	33.3%	66.7%	53
Pike County	3	0%	100%	34
Cass County	3	0%	100%	37
Franklin County	3	0%	100%	43
Massac County	3	0%	100%	45
White County	2	50%	50%	45.5
Douglas County	2	0%	100%	49
Richland County	2	0%	100%	40
Randolph County	2	50%	50%	46
Carroll County	2	0%	100%	50
Jersey County	2	50%	50%	36
Jackson County	2	0%	100%	49
Clinton County	2	0%	100%	43.5
Henry County	2	50%	50%	31
Christian County	2	0%	100%	46.5
Hamilton County	2	0%	100%	43
Grundy County	2	50%	50%	46.5
Jasper County	1	0%	100%	74
Bond County	1	0%	100%	26
Marshall County	1	0%	100%	45
Iroquois County	1	0%	100%	43
Washington County	1	0%	100%	41
Wabash County	1	100%	0%	61
DeWitt County	1	0%	100%	41
Effingham County	1	0%	100%	33
Lawrence County	1	0%	100%	45
Morgan County	1	0%	100%	45
Cumberland County	1	100%	0%	40
Hardin County	1	0%	100%	32
Bureau County	1	0%	100%	54
Edgar County	1	0%	100%	44
Clay County	1	0%	100%	32
Hancock County	1	100%	0%	46
Pulaski County	1	0%	100%	56
Moultrie County	1	0%	100%	60
Perry County	1	100%	0%	44
Ogle County	1	0%	100%	30