COVID-19 has disrupted the criminal justice system, forcing courts to dramatically scale back operations and spurring fears about the risk of outbreaks in prisons in jails. Check here for ongoing Injustice Watch coverage of the coronavirus crisis.
Charles Thomas has been denied bond twice since mid-March, even as judges and prosecutors have said publicly that they are doing everything they can to release people from the jail.
Going to the doctor or the grocery store can be nearly impossible when you are on house arrest.
After parole rehearings are requested for two men one vote short of winning parole, advocates fear relief may come too late.
Older inmates have mostly been left behind by criminal justice reforms. Now, after one inmate has already died from COVID-19, more than two thousand of them are at serious risk.
Since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, Injustice Watch has been tracking the number of cases and the population inside the Cook County Jail.
Data shows people are still being booked into the jail, even as 17 detainees and four correctional officers have tested positive so far for the virus that causes COVID-19.
The order comes over a week after Walter Ogrod began showing symptoms associated with coronavirus.
In an open letter to Cook County Chief Judge Timothy Evans, reform advocates are demanding the release of as many detainees as possible in order to mitigate risks related to the new coronavirus.
A Pennsylvania inmate whom the Philadelphia prosecutor has concluded is “likely innocent” has symptoms of coronavirus as he remains incarcerated, awaiting a hearing that was postponed amid precautions related to the outbreak.
The court will suspend all non-essential matters for 30 days starting Tuesday, the chief judge told presiding judges in a three-hour meeting on Friday.