The head of Illinois’ prison watchdog says the new head of Illinois prisons has the experience needed to run the troubled agency.
Interim Director John Baldwin ran the Iowa Department of Corrections for eight years, Illinois has more than five times as many prisoners as Iowa. But Jennifer Vollen-Katz with the John Howard Association says that shouldn’t be a concern.
“I don’t think coming from a similar but smaller system is in any way a handicap. I think there’s a lot about corrections that’s similar that will give him an eye toward what kind of management is necessary in a bigger system.”
Vollen-Katz says the department is in desperate need of stable leadership at the top. Governor Bruce Rauner’s last pick to run the prison system resigned after just two months on the job.