Cook County Inmates Sent To Kankakee, Jefferson Counties

Cook County inmates are often sent to prisons in other counties—not because of overcrowding, but to maintain prison safety, according to a Cook County sheriff's spokesman.

According to a prison reform organization, that makes it tough for inmates' attorneys or families to visit; prison officials say it's for everyone's safety, given that the transferred inmates are "trouble makers."

Cook County has agreed to pay Kankakee County up to $1.5 million and Jefferson County up to $920,000 to house Cook County inmates between October 2007 and October 2008.

Kankakee County gets $60 per inmate per day and Jefferson County $50 per day.

A one-day pass to Great America is $39.99, rooms at The Drake start around $185 per night, and the Ragdale artists' retreat is $30 per day. [S-T]