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| Guards' union, Quinn fight over prison closures |
| By morrisdailyherald.com - Monique Garcia — Chicago Tribune |
| Published: 08/27/2012 |
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llinois -- As Gov. Pat Quinn attempts to move forward with the closure of several prisons and juvenile detention centers, thousands of inmates will be moved to facilities that corrections workers and watchdog groups warn already are dangerously overcrowded and understaffed. The Democratic governor argues the closures must happen to help dig the state out of its massive debt. But the move has sparked a bitter fight with the state's largest employee union, which says the closures will decimate the economies of the small towns that rely on prisons for jobs, not to mention the safety concerns. The closures were supposed to be completed at the end of this month, but that's unlikely to happen because of a lawsuit by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. The union has asked a judge to block the closures, saying guards face "injury or death" as cells continue to fill up. The two sides are in arbitration, but the state has agreed to halt prisoner transfers through at least Friday. Originally designed to house 34,000 inmates, Illinois' prisons are now home to an estimated 48,700, said John Maki, executive director of the John Howard Association, a prison watchdog group. As a result, Maki said, prisoners have been forced to bunk in hallways and closets — pretty much anywhere the state can find space. In all, 4,800 inmates are scheduled to be shuffled among state lockups to make room for those coming from the two prisons scheduled for closure. So far, fewer than 100 inmates have been moved. Read More. |
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