General

In a recently released national study, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) found that Illinois ranked among the four worst states in the country for rates of reported sexual victimization in juvenile detention facilities.

The chair of the Illinois Juvenile Justice Commission says Gov. Pat Quinn must act quickly to protect kids in the state’s youth prisons. Retired Judge George Timberlake says incarcerated youth need to be able to complain safely to an independent government employee.

More than 1 in 5 juveniles at a now-defunct Joliet youth prison reported being victims of sexual assault, one of the highest rates in the country, according to a report released Thursday by the U.S. Department of Justice.

In a year of great fiscal challenge, the General Assembly approved Gov. Pat Quinn’s proposal to double funding for Redeploy Illinois, a successful program helping teens get services in their communities instead of behind sent away to distant prisons. Legislators also passed a bill to customize Redeploy programs for Cook County neighborhoods and bring the diversion program to the state’s largest county for the first time.

A year ago, one of America's great cities had become one of its deadliest as gun violence exploded in Chicago. By this time last year, 179 people had been shot to death. This year, the number is 117 – a drop of 35 percent.