Bryant: Drug Smuggling "Rampant" in Illinois Prisons
Sen. Terri Bryant (R-Murphysboro) says the Department of Corrections isn’t doing enough to protect staff from the influx of illegal drugs entering Illinois prisons.
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A Republican Senator from southern Illinois is continuing to raise the alarm about illegal drugs being smuggled into Illinois prisons.
Sen. Terri Bryant (R-Murphysboro), a retired Department of Corrections employee, says drugs like fentanyl and K2, or synthetic marijuana known as “spice” is being smuggled into prisons through the mail and packages being shipped into facilities.
Bryant told me on WMAY Radio this morning that, in addition to mail, drugs are being snuck into the prisons, too.
“Drugs are being smuggled in primarily through the mail, often it's legal mail,” she said. “Generally it's the regular mail. We also know that there are bad staff from time to time. Is it coming in with the staff? Possibly. Is it coming in through the visitors? Possibly. Is it coming in through vendors? Possibly. But we know that it's rampant throughout the facilities.”
Bryant says letters, which are made to look like fake letters from an inmate’s attorney, are brushed with the drug, allowed to dry, then sent to the inmate in prison.
Says she’s visited 9 prisons inside and out of her district and they’ve all had instances of staff and inmates getting sick.
Bryant says she has asked the Department of Corrections to start scanning mail digitally so potentially tainted paper can’t get into an inmates hand, but the department has not instituted a broad scanning policy yet.
The Pritzker administration has attempted to downplay any issues in the system thus far, but Bryant says the evidence is obvious.
“We've seen it with our own eyes. All of those things are real,” she said. “Anyone who continues to use the narrative that the Governor is using right now, and his people are using, anyone who dies because of this, the blood is on their hands.”
At a news conference in Springfield Tuesday, Bryant called for the resignation of IDOC Acting Director Latoya Hughes or for the Senate not to confirm her nomination to the post.
The Department of Corrections issued the following statement Wednesday morning:
“The Illinois Department of Corrections’ (IDOC) top priority remains the safety of our staff, individuals in custody, and everyone entering our facilities. While we are actively exploring additional options to enhance safety, it is important to note that the issue of contraband entering facilities is not unique to mail or to IDOC. Contraband can be introduced through various means, and this challenge is faced by correctional departments at every level of government. IDOC is committed to addressing these challenges comprehensively by strengthening existing protocols, implementing new security measures, and learning from best practices across the nation to ensure the safety and security of our facilities.”
We asked DOC for an exact number of employees and prisoners who have been sick or hospitalized from exposure or overdose but did not hear back.