Rowdy inmates could be transferred to East Moline CC - CBS4 - WHBF Quad Cities, IL-IA News Weather Sports

Rowdy inmates could be transferred to East Moline CC

By: Kate Pabich
kpabich@cbs4qc.com

Suspicious deaths, gruesome beatings, and staff attacks: those are some of the issues going on at Illinois State Prisons, and the inmates responsible could be coming to East Moline Correctional Center.

With only three maximum security prisons left in Illinois, after an incident, sometimes the guilty parties actually end up in lower security prisons.

"Our people are in danger every single day."

Gregg Johnson is President of the local 46 Union for the East Moline Correctional Center and says there's a good chance they'll get some transfers.
 
"If the disciplinary problems continue, we're going to see some inmates come to East Moline that shouldn't be in East Moline but there's just nowhere else to put them."

The Illinois Department of Corrections doesn't dispute that, spokesperson Stacey Solano says it's typical to transfer inmates during an investigation.

And there have been many investigations just this month. A Pontiac officer had to undergo facial reconstructive surgery last month after he was beat up by an inmate.
Two guards and a chaplain were injured at Menard when about 15 inmates turned on them,
and also at Menard, a suspicious inmate death investigation that union members there say, is murder.

Johnson says minimum security East Moline is no place to transfer these inmates

"Many of these guys just want to do their time and go home but when you bring these trouble makers in it jeopardizes the whole population."

Johnson says the recent closing of Tamms prison, and overcrowding are responsible for rising crime.

"There's a reason Tamms was build it was built to house the worst of the worst now we have no death penalty, we have no supermax and it's just a free shot for these inmates to do whatever they want. Now everybody is in danger, staff and inmates."

But Solano says none of the inmates involved in these crimes, came from Tamms.