Here is the latest on the lockdown situation at Menard Correctional Center (CC) in Chester, Illinois from DOC media spokesperson Tom Shaer, this lockdown occurring over the weekend after homemade hooch was found in cells there:
The lockdown at Menard CC is expected to last through this week. As the investigation continues, there are many more inmates to interview and staff with whom we’ll be reviewing many things. The best conditions for interviews of inmates exist during a lockdown.
No new weapons have been found. There is absolutely no indication the existing homemade weapons were stored with any particular incident planned. The vast majority of the 13 homemade weapons were found in two cells in North 1 cell house. The food products were found in a sanitation area.
The total number of homemade weapons or material for potential homemade weapons found in all Illinois Department of Corrections facilities has dropped by approximately 80 percent since the year 2000. There is simply not an issue of widespread homemade weapons in Illinois prisons.
On Friday (4/4), numerous gallons of homemade alcohol-type product (referred to by inmates as “hooch”), juice, sugar and approximately 13 homemade weapons (commonly referred to as “shanks”) were found during a routine search at Menard C.C. It is very important to note that no weapons of any kind have been used in any incident at Menard Correctional Center in approximately two years. Further, in the past year, there has been only one incident where a weapon was used against staff anywhere in IDOC.
Since the beginning of prisons, inmates have proven they will attempt to make homemade alcohol and homemade weapons. It is the responsibility of staff and management working together to prevent, as much as possible, such occurrences and it is the responsibility of staff to follow procedures proven successful in such prevention. This contraband was found Friday during a routine search by staff.
We conduct many routine searches, such as that which revealed these items. We have an ongoing, extensive program of intelligence-gathering and investigation. There are approximately 3,700 inmates at Menard and the number of inmates thus far shown to be involved in this matter clearly indicates there is not a high number of inmates involved in such activity.
IDOC views the presence of ANY homemade weapon as a serious matter and conducts regular sweeps and searches of every prison in Illinois. We are currently conducting meticulous, extensive searches of every square foot of Menard C.C. and will continue this process over numerous days. Of course, Menard C.C. remains on Level One Lockdown during this time and will remain so until the searches and investigation are absolutely complete. That will likely last this entire week.
Prior to this lockdown, Menard C.C. had only three unplanned security-related full Level One Lockdowns in nearly a year. Level One Lockdown means no inmate movement out-of-cell except for health care and showers, no visitors, no transfers, no classes, no library or similar privileges, no inmate-work scheduled.