South Cook News

There were 161 offenders convicted of drug crimes living in Cook County who were released on parole during the second quarter of 2025, according to Illinois Department of Corrections data obtained by the South Cook News.

Of the parolees, 150 were men and 11 were women, with a median age of 40. The youngest parolee was a 20-year-old man sentenced in 2024, and the oldest was a 68-year-old woman sentenced in 2025.

The offender incarcerated the longest was Jose A. Carrizoza. He was convicted in 2010 when he was 40 years old. He is now 55.

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	161	6.8%	93.2%	40
Macon County	27	11.1%	88.9%	40
St. Clair County	22	18.2%	81.8%	35.5
Will County	21	4.8%	95.2%	38
Winnebago County	18	16.7%	83.3%	50
Peoria County	17	11.8%	88.2%	35
Kane County	16	18.8%	81.3%	39.5
Madison County	15	33.3%	66.7%	41
Lake County	13	7.7%	92.3%	51
Champaign County	11	9.1%	90.9%	46
McHenry County	11	18.2%	81.8%	36
DuPage County	11	9.1%	90.9%	37
McLean County	10	10%	90%	34.5
Tazewell County	8	25%	75%	40.5
Rock Island County	8	37.5%	62.5%	29
Adams County	8	50%	50%	43.5
Knox County	6	16.7%	83.3%	39
DeKalb County	6	16.7%	83.3%	32.5
Jefferson County	6	33.3%	66.7%	40
Franklin County	6	33.3%	66.7%	52
Mason County	5	40%	60%	33
Marion County	5	60%	40%	48
Jackson County	5	60%	40%	40
Kankakee County	5	20%	80%	45
Sangamon County	5	40%	60%	35
Montgomery County	4	50%	50%	38
Crawford County	4	75%	25%	41.5
Vermilion County	4	0%	100%	38
Shelby County	4	50%	50%	53.5
White County	4	25%	75%	41.5
Saline County	4	50%	50%	39.5
Coles County	3	66.7%	33.3%	42
Macoupin County	3	33.3%	66.7%	39
Randolph County	3	0%	100%	48
Clark County	3	33.3%	66.7%	45
Williamson County	3	0%	100%	34
Whiteside County	3	0%	100%	35
Henry County	3	33.3%	66.7%	40
Morgan County	3	33.3%	66.7%	53
Wabash County	3	66.7%	33.3%	28
Fulton County	3	0%	100%	40
Clay County	2	0%	100%	38
Richland County	2	0%	100%	29
Christian County	2	0%	100%	39
Stephenson County	2	0%	100%	39
Boone County	2	50%	50%	53.5
Wayne County	2	50%	50%	50.5
Washington County	2	50%	50%	42.5
Livingston County	2	0%	100%	32
Logan County	2	0%	100%	48
Ford County	2	50%	50%	33.5
Fayette County	2	0%	100%	39.5
Effingham County	2	0%	100%	36
Edwards County	2	0%	100%	40
Edgar County	2	0%	100%	58
McDonough County	2	0%	100%	43.5
DeWitt County	2	50%	50%	37.5
Clinton County	2	50%	50%	39.5
Bond County	1	0%	100%	58
Gallatin County	1	0%	100%	38
Woodford County	1	0%	100%	32
Greene County	1	0%	100%	30
Union County	1	0%	100%	28
Grundy County	1	0%	100%	45
Hardin County	1	0%	100%	65
Stark County	1	0%	100%	45
Cass County	1	0%	100%	35
Iroquois County	1	100%	0%	40
Scott County	1	0%	100%	45
Schuyler County	1	0%	100%	34
Kendall County	1	0%	100%	43
Cumberland County	1	0%	100%	39
Lasalle County	1	0%	100%	34
Pulaski County	1	0%	100%	51
Pike County	1	100%	0%	47
Piatt County	1	0%	100%	38
Marshall County	1	100%	0%	48
Ogle County	1	0%	100%	32
Moultrie County	1	0%	100%	36
Massac County	1	0%	100%	26
Mercer County	1	0%	100%	22
Menard County	1	0%	100%	26