Kane County Jail Disturance

The Chicago Tribune, MetroNorthwest
Monday, November 25, 1996

INMATE RIOT IS QUELLED AT KANE COUNTY JAIL

   The Kane County sheriff's department turned out in force over the weekend
to put down what was called the worst uprising at its long-overcrowded County
Jail.

   About 100 inmates refused to surrender excess clothing when asked
Saturday, prompting the department to call in a corrections response team, a
SWAT team and dogs from the county forest preserve to clear out uncooperative
prisoners in four cellblocks, Kane County Sheriff Ken Ramsey said. The jail
houses defendants who have been charged with crimes but are awaiting trial.

   No guards, sheriff's police or inmates were injured beyond some minor
bruises, he said, and the situation was resolved within about five hours.

   "On a scale of one to 10, we rate it a 4, but it's still the most serious
uprising we've had in the jail to date," Ramsey said. "The threat level to my
employees is unacceptable, and we have to do something."

   The uprising was in response to the sheriff's department's efforts to
control flooding problems allegedly caused by inmates flushing excess
clothing and food down toilets to block the sewage system, sheriff's police
and correctional officers said.

   Low-level flooding began Friday and continued Saturday morning, posing
potential problems for the department's communications center in an adjacent
building, guards said. A flooding incident in August caused some temporary
problems in relaying information to officers on patrol, they said.



   Asked for the uprising's causes, guards cited gang members looking to
demonstrate strength within their cellblocks, inmates hoping to cause
problems because they faced long sentences and had nothing to lose, and the
jail's overcrowded conditions.

   Such overcrowding has long been a concern for the sheriff's department and
the Kane County Board. A $51 million proposal that would have funded a
576-bed addition was defeated by a 2-1 ratio last year, despite active
campaigning. Alternative solutions have been slow to come.



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