New pilot program provides Cook County inmate with state ID cards

Posted on December 11, 2023
Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias. (Photo courtesy: WJBC/File)

By Dave Dahl

SPRINGFIELD – Because it’s easier to get a job or a place to live when you have a state ID card, a new pilot program between the Cook County sheriff’s department and the Illinois secretary of state will provide those cards to exiting inmates.

“Most people leave jail and prison worse off than when they arrive. This hurts everyone,” said Jennifer Wollen-Katz, executive director of the John Howard Association, a prison watchdog group. “One way in which we can give people a better chance of success is by making sure they have a state ID card.”

She appeared at a news conference held by Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias and Sheriff Tom Dart. Giannoulias says he is already getting feelers from other counties exploring the same idea, and Dart says this is a first-of-its-kind partnership, years in the making because it is difficult to do.

Dave Dahl can be reached at [email protected].

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