News
Most Read
Most E-mailed
E-mail Article
Print Article
It's A Felony For Inmates to Disable Cell Door Locks
Holding up a five-inch thick stack of work orders to fix jail doors, Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart on Wednesday hailed a new law making it a felony for inmates to jam objects into cell doors to prevent them from locking.
Gov. Quinn signed the bill into law Wednesday at a news conference with Dart in a maximum-security wing of the Cook County Jail.
"It is no small issue for us," Dart said.
Dart said inmates use toothpaste caps, wads of toilet paper and other objects -- called "poppers" by correctional officers -- to interfere with the locks in cell doors. "The detainees can get quite creative around here," he said.
The practice had not been a crime previously, although it was a violation of jail rules.
