Jail Food Rules Shape Daily Life In County Jails
Inmates rely on meals as a daily routine lifeline as some jails hire large staff and others rely on pie bakers. The state mandates 1800 to 2000 daily calories with at least one hot meal, but actual provisions vary by county. Breakfast is standard, lunch often features a sandwich and vegetables, while dinner dominates inmate routines and barter.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
James Like
Associated Press
Rock Island
Effingham
Kenneth Moore
Moore
State Department of Corrections
Robert Wardwell
Perry County
Wardwell
Sangamon County
James Purdon
Cook County
Hardiman
Kane County
Arthur Holda
Holda
Task Force
Peoria
Pam Rathbun
Inmate meals spark debate over jail food standards
Prisoners complain of dog stew style leftovers and limited portions while Cook County contract Szabo Food Service touts efficiency, menu planning, and safety trays. Woodford County highlights a one woman kitchen delivering varied meals at 81 cents per inmate.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Cook County
Szabo
Hardiman
Maxine Freeman
Woodford County
Inmate James Blan Faces Claims of Limited Aid
A Macon County inmate named James Blan says many people come to the area seeking help but find none, alleging they cannot get assistance because they have already been up there.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Macon County
James Blan
Jails in Southern Illinois offer varied menus new to home cooks
In a look at jail food across Southern Illinois counties, Union and Randolph counties pay caterers to provide three hot meals daily at rates of 7.05 and 6.75 dollars per inmate per day respectively. Franklin Williamson Jackson Perry counties cook their own meals with annual kitchen budgets and per meal caps, featuring breakfasts of cereal or donuts, lunches like meatloaf or potato soup, and suppers of pork, chicken or sandwiches.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Ann Schottman Knol
Union
Randolph Counties
Union County
Larry Tripp
Randolph County
Arndell
Cecil Perry
Franklin
Williamson
Jackson
Perry
Bill Willis
Woodrow Procunier
Jackson County
Kane County Jail touted as model facility in Illinois
The Kane County Jail near the Fox River, built in 1975, is praised as a humane, well staffed model with windowed cells, carpeted floors, and a circular secure design. Yet officials warn that aging jails statewide face dangerous, costly lawsuits, staffing shortages, and rising recidivism if reforms lag.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
James Litke
Associated Press
Kane County
Fox River
Illinois
Ial
Illinois AP Editors
George Kramer
County Board
Also Mentioned on This Page
Sangamon
Purdon
Cook Woodford County
Freeman
Southern
Willis
Jerry Woolsey
Williamson County
Jerald Kobler
Macoupin County
Richard Zarr
Scott Diamond
American Civil Liberties Union National Prisons Project
National Association of Counties
Charles Vaughn
DuPage County
Edward Glomb
Robert Johnson
Aurora
Johnson
Carlinville
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