KANE SHERIFF SAYS TOO FEW OFFICERS SUPERVISING TOO MANY INMATES
In a series of statements laden with supportive statistics, Kane County correctional officers said Tuesday conditions at the county jail are so bad the community should fear for its safety.
For proof, they said, look no further than the hostage situation a county inmate created at Delnor Hospital last May. Increasing the number of officers at the jail is the only way to avoid more incidents in the future, they said.
The county’s head elected official is skeptical about the danger.
Correctional officers said the jail is so understaffed it is common practice to have a single officer supervising up to 128 inmates. In October, inmates beat and strangled an officer who had no immediate backup because other officers could not leave their posts.
“I’ve always known someone had my back or help was on the way,” said Blythe Miller, a 17- year jail employee. “Lately, I cannot say the same. ... If something isn’t done, then more horrific incidents are going to happen, and you guys can just keep adding zeroes to the amounts already being paid out.”
The officers who spoke Tuesday, and the attorney who represents them during union contract negotiations, referenced Illinois Department of Corrections jail inspection reports. One, from 2010, states the jail needs 120 officers to be safe. As of Nov. 1, there were 116 officers. There have been 30 lockdowns since Dec. 1.
The county board authorizes Sheriff Don Kramer to have 124 officers. But filling the vacancies has run into conflict with Kramer’s budget. He’s kept his books in the black, in part, by keeping positions unfilled.
Kramer said even when he’s moved to fill jobs, he’s run into problems. Kramer said officers routinely leave Kane County to go work at the jail in DeKalb County because the pay and workload is better.
Kramer said the county board wants the money to come from him.
“They want me to charge the inmates for their incarceration,” Kramer said. “These people have no money. There’s nothing there to get.”
County Board Chairman Chris Lauzen pointed to the most recent jail inspection report by the Illinois Department of Corrections. He said in the section that measures whether there was enough officers at the jail, the inspectors checked “yes.” Lauzen also said the county increased its spending at the jail by $ 4 million over the last four years.
He said, “... Part of what’s happened the last four years is we’ve made substantially higher expenditures in public safety.”