Justin Hammers, Chief of Operations at IDOC | Illinois Department of Corrections oficial website
Justin Hammers, Chief of Operations at IDOC | Illinois Department of Corrections oficial website
Both of them were men, with a median age of 36. The youngest parolee was a 26-year-old man sentenced in 2022, and the oldest was a 46-year-old man sentenced in 2024.
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 | 223 | 6.3% | 93.7% | 40 |
| Winnebago County | 22 | 18.2% | 81.8% | 38.5 |
| Macon County | 21 | 9.5% | 90.5% | 41 |
| Peoria County | 16 | 12.5% | 87.5% | 40 |
| Sangamon County | 12 | 0% | 100% | 48 |
| Lake County | 10 | 30% | 70% | 40.5 |
| St. Clair County | 10 | 30% | 70% | 37.5 |
| Will County | 10 | 10% | 90% | 42.5 |
| Madison County | 9 | 0% | 100% | 39 |
| Kane County | 9 | 0% | 100% | 33 |
| DuPage County | 8 | 0% | 100% | 40.5 |
| Macoupin County | 7 | 0% | 100% | 37 |
| Tazewell County | 7 | 42.9% | 57.1% | 36 |
| Marion County | 7 | 0% | 100% | 38 |
| Rock Island County | 6 | 16.7% | 83.3% | 39 |
| Champaign County | 6 | 0% | 100% | 51.5 |
| Vermilion County | 5 | 20% | 80% | 39 |
| Jackson County | 5 | 0% | 100% | 42 |
| Kendall County | 5 | 0% | 100% | 34 |
| Jefferson County | 4 | 25% | 75% | 39 |
| Lasalle County | 4 | 25% | 75% | 43.5 |
| McHenry County | 4 | 25% | 75% | 38 |
| Massac County | 4 | 25% | 75% | 36.5 |
| Lawrence County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 33 |
| Monroe County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 41 |
| McLean County | 3 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 41 |
| Iroquois County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 43 |
| Stephenson County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 27 |
| Union County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 32 |
| Edgar County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 43 |
| Douglas County | 3 | 33.3% | 66.7% | 44 |
| Williamson County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 44 |
| Christian County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 56 |
| Adams County | 3 | 0% | 100% | 26 |
| Morgan County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 50.5 |
| Saline County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 54.5 |
| Montgomery County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 32 |
| White County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 37.5 |
| Woodford County | 2 | 50% | 50% | 40 |
| Logan County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 46.5 |
| Clay County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 31 |
| Lee County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 37 |
| Knox County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 38.5 |
| DeKalb County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 36 |
| Franklin County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 35.5 |
| Johnson County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 39 |
| Greene County | 2 | 0% | 100% | 49.5 |
| Clark County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 53 |
| Ford County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 26 |
| Whiteside County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 31 |
| Wayne County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 38 |
| Fulton County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 35 |
| Gallatin County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 74 |
| Grundy County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 26 |
| Hancock County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 40 |
| Shelby County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 25 |
| Schuyler County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 28 |
| Hardin County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 34 |
| Henderson County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 40 |
| Randolph County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 27 |
| Perry County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 23 |
| Kankakee County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 25 |
| Moultrie County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 26 |
| Livingston County | 1 | 0% | 100% | 26 |
| Mason County | 1 | 100% | 0% | 38 |
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