Tag: LWOP

Joseph Dole: Corrective Clemency

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“Today it is increasingly recognized that mass incarceration is the civil rights issue of our era.” “Today in Illinois we currently have thousands of people unnecessarily over-sentenced to death by incarceration.” “Illinois has thus far failed to heed the canary’s true message and reform the state’s criminal legal system.” “It’s time for Governor Pritzker to clear Illinois’ slow death row just as Governor Ryan cleared the state’s former death row.” “It’s worth noting that by comparison a life sentence in Illinois used to provide parole eligibility after 11 years and 3 months.” To hear The Canary’s True Message, listen to …Read More →

Mission Statement

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Parole Illinois aims to raise awareness about mass incarceration and extreme-sentencing policies in our state, bring incarcerated voices into prison-policy discussions, and research and advocate for policies that give every incarcerated person in the state  a fair chance to return home and successfully reintegrate into their community. Art by Joseph Dole, Parole Illinois Board Member

PRISON ALERT: COVID-19

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Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced this week that Illinois prisons would be closed to new inmates in response to growing concern about the COVID-19 pandemic spreading within Illinois’ correctional facilities. As of Friday, at least five incarcerated men at Stateville Correctional Center have tested positive for the virus, along with multiple staff members at the prison. A staff member at the Sheridan Correctional Center also tested positive for COVID-19, and so did multiple individuals housed at the North Lawndale Adult Transition Center in Chicago. CLICK

Raul Dorado: LWOP

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I wake up each morning with the burden of having to serve another day of a life sentence in prison. This debt to society is not measured by years, but by breaths. All life sentences in Illinois are without the possibility of parole (LWOP). So, my debt will be paid, in full, upon my last breath. Just as fractions can be converted into decimals and decimals into fractions, there must be a mathematical formula to convert breaths into years and give me a sense of what percentage of my life is leveraged against me. Perhaps I can get there by …Read More →

Ohio Judges Releasing Prisoners

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To Fight Coronavirus. It’s a Good Idea. To keep the novel coronavirus from spreading, public health officials are urging everyone to stay at home and distance themselves from others. But for the 2 million people in jails and prisons across the country, often crammed into crowded holding cells or dorm-style housing units, that’s simply not possible: Incarceration creates a perfect breeding ground for infections. In the United States, no inmates have tested positive for the virus yet, but public health experts believe it’s only a matter of time: China saw an explosion of cases across its prisons in February. In Iran, …Read More →

PUBLIC MEETING: AKA SOLIDARITY

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Greetings Parole IL Supporters and Family, In light of COVID-19, we’ve decided to take proactive steps to encourage social distancing, a practice encouraged by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to limit the spread of the disease. As such, our meeting March 22nd, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. will be moved to a virtual platform. This will allow us to continue with our planned agenda. There are two (2) ways to join the meeting… 1 Via Webcam We will be utilizing Zoom Conferencing technology.  The link to the Zoom meeting is…  https://zoom.us/j/766752246 (Will also be posted on Parole IL Facebook Page.) Please note: You may need …Read More →