IL: Prisons still keeping people locked up after their release dates
After serving 10 years in prison for criminal sexual assault, Marcus Barnes was counting down the days until his release date on Dec. 17, 2018.
But when his release date finally arrived, he was told that the Chicago apartment he was planning on moving to was too close to a home day care facility. It would be a violation of housing restrictions imposed on him as a person on the sex offender registry, and, therefore, he would remain in prison.
Barnes’ family scrambled to find alternatives. They say they found 11 different housing options for him, only to have each of them rejected by the Illinois Department of Corrections (IDOC). And so, 16 months after his original release date, he was still at Graham Correctional Center when a guard there tested positive for COVID-19.
Now, a coalition of 45 local and national criminal justice reform organizations, led by the Chicago 400 Alliance, is calling on Gov. JB Pritzker to ease conviction-based housing restrictions for the duration of the pandemic. The move would allow people who have completed their sentences to finally leave prison.
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Yea, if they have not helped us up to now i would not hold my breath for them to do anything in the future. The one option he does have is to move somewhere where they do not have such restrictions even if it means another state. We cannot rely on anyone doing anything so we have to do for ourselves. there are many states that have no living restrictions or they are minimal. All he has to do if find such a state as them if they will accept him and if they agree he can be released. Why would you want to stay where you are obviously not wanted anyway. Its better than staying in prison
Illinois has restrictions not only from living near schools and playgrounds but also daycare centers including home day care centers that have been closed for over 10 years that are 494 feet away, 6 feet two close! In fact, if anyone ever ran a daycare out of their home, that address is forever listed as a daycare center and you can’t live within 500 feet! Probation officers won’t let a RSO live at address where drug activity occurred, even if that person who lived there died from a drug overdose and you would be living there instead! If you know of a RSO in an IL prison looking for an address to parole to, I may be able to assist. Just get in touch with http://www.koinoniahouse.org and let someone there know you would like Roger to help find housing for this person.
Roger,
Good for looking out for other RSO’ S this community needs a lot more people like yourself with helpful info on what to do when your in trouble