Coronavirus Cases Inside Cook County Jail Soar Into Triple Digits

COOK COUNTY, IL — Coronavirus cases jumped into the triple digits this week at Cook County Jail since the first two cases were announced on March 23.

As of Thursday, 167 detainees and 46 employees from the Cook County Sheriff's Office have tested positive for COVID-19. Eleven inmates are hospitalized.

Judge LeRoy K. Martin Jr. ordered the case-by-case bond reviews of inmates awaiting trial to reduce the jail population to curb the spread of COVID-19. Over the past week, 400 non-violent, low-level inmates awaiting trial have been released from the county jail.

The behind-the-walls population dipped from 5,306 a week to 4,711, with 2,590 detainees in community corrections, including electronic monitoring.

A 42-year-old Albany Park man released following a bond review after enduring COVID-19 inside the walls, told the Chicago Sun-Times that the atmosphere inside the jail is like a “Disneyland for coronavirus.”

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