Using the newly-launched Huffington Post Chicago as a forum, Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart goes into full-defense mode about allegations raised in U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald's blistering report on the unsafe and inhumane conditions at Cook County Jail. Dart
resents Fitzgerald's work, it seems, because the federal prosecutor's findings did not feature "the plethora of changes I've introduced in the 20 months I've been in office," even after the sheriff opened up his facility for inspection:
But we also recognize the need to highlight many of the successes overlooked or completely ignored by CRIPA [Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act] inspectors in their recent report. Just as we plan to use their recommendations as a road map for future success, we also plan to build upon the achievements already gained in the last 20 months of my administration in order to ensure the jail is a safe environment for inmates and workers alike.
Dart boasts an accomplished resume and shows a reformer's bent, so hopefully the changes he's implemented really will turn the facility around. But now is not the time to pass the buck. As the report lays out, that's been going on way too long. In fact, many of the cases of abuse and medical malfeasance raised by Fitzgerald took place in the past two year.
Both prisoners and the communities to which they ultimately return are in danger because of conditions at the jail. The public should be fully aware of it and the jail staff should quickly address the deficiencies laid out by Fitzgerald.
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