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Promoting public safety through cost-effective prison reform

Key date: JHA will be testifying at a hearing chaired by Representatives Lindsey LaPointe and Kelly Cassidy is scheduled for November 10 at 10am at the Bilandic Building in Chicago; the hearing will consider the state of mental healthcare for people in need inside IDOC. It is critical that IDOC be held accountable for the treatment, health, and safety of people in its custody, and that potential legislative action or interventions in response to the current situation be considered.

JHA’s 125th Anniversary Event was a huge success thanks to you! We had a wonderful evening with Larry Miller, Luke Tanen, Sandra Brown and more. Click here to see photos and to make a donation - event recording coming soon.

HB4559 / SB3333: Clarify Access to Sentence Credits for Jail Programming (Rep. Norma Hernandez & Sen. Laura Ellman)

Guarantees people in jail awaiting trial receive sentencing credit for completion of eligible programs, as intended, by clarifying statutory language. Collaborating organizations: ACLU of Illinois, Alliance for Safety & Justice, Cabrini Green Legal Aid, DuPage County Public Defender’s Office, Law Office of the Cook County Public Defender, John Howard Association, Women’s Justice Institute

READ FACT SHEET HERE
JHA 2025-2026 Prison Population Survey
Read JHA's 2025 Annual REport

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Mission & Vision

Our Mission: JHA monitors prisons and advances independent oversight of carceral systems to promote humane treatment and increased transparency.

Our Vision: As long as there are prisons, we aspire to have a system that is equitable, reduces harm, and respects people’s humanity.

our guiding principles

Defying Injustice. Defending Humanity.

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Illinois has one of the most overcrowded, understaffed and underfunded prison systems in the U.S. We believe that people who are incarcerated should be treated humanely and with dignity and respect.

 

Impact

For more than 120 years, the John Howard Association has served as Illinois' only independent citizen correctional oversight organization. We uncover problems large and small in our correctional facilities and advocate for reforms that lead to meaningful change for prisoners and their families. System-wide reform leads to more successful correctional outcomes for our communities, and better use of limited resources and taxpayer funds.

JHA’s work leads to changes inside our prisons and throughout our system that impact thousands of lives for the better.

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Advocacy
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Legislative Impact
Legislative Impact
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In the Media
In the Media
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John Howard Association in the News

News
Report: Logan Correctional Center is unsafe, inhumane
Report: Logan Correctional Center is unsafe, inhumane

Logan Correctional Center does not fare well in a new assessment from a prison watchdog group. A report from the nonprofit John Howard Association outlines what executive director Jenny Vollen-Katz says are unsafe and inhumane conditions, along with $116 million in deferred maintenance. (Capitol City NOW)

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Illinois prison healthcare still poor as state goes 1 year without long-term medical provider
Illinois prison healthcare still poor as state goes 1 year without long-term medical provider

“The state has been extending a short-term emergency contract with Centurion Health since July 2025 after backing out of a 10-year, $4 billion contract with Wexford Health Sources. Since then, the transition from Wexford to Centurion has complicated people’s health care and left at least one subcontractor for Wexford unpaid.” (WBEZ)

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Illinois Prison Officials Digitized Mail to Stop Contraband, But New Data Shows Little Results So Far
Illinois Prison Officials Digitized Mail to Stop Contraband, But New Data Shows Little Results So Far

“The switch to digitized mail for incarcerated people has had little impact on the drug exposures the policy sought to stop, according to new data from the Illinois Department of Corrections. 

Instead, there was an increase in total drug discoveries between the six months prior to digitization and the six months after — 392 to 414, according to the report obtained by WTTW News.” (WTTW)

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