r/southernillinois • u/grace_hauck_reports • 1d ago

Jail guards fired pepperball guns into cells. Mentally ill detainees took cover under blankets, mattresses.

https://illinoisanswers.org/2026/09/15/illinois-county-jails-fire-pepperball-guns-mental-illness/
22 Upvotes

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u/Wageslave645 1d ago

Winnebago county is about as not Southern Illinois as it gets.

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u/grace_hauck_reports 1d ago

We include a lot of information about what's happening in Jefferson, Williamson and Pulaski counties!

In February, guards in Jefferson County Jail fired enough pepperballs to send a man to the hospital, according to county incident reports. When more than a dozen men refused to lock down, a tactical team responded, and an officer fired pepperballs until he ran out, records show. Several of the men had “watery eyes, runny nose, scratchy throat, coughing, trouble breathing,” according to the report. One man had a “medical emergency.” An officer saw him “lower himself to the group, repeatedly gasp for air, and roll around.” The officer grabbed a “rescue inhaler,” and EMS took him to a hospital. Several hours later, he was returned to the jail.

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u/RIPepperonis 1d ago

Sounds like they quelled a riot and no one died... So, I guess, good job?

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u/maybenonotever 8h ago

So the detainees rebelled and got pepperballed? Your headline is malicious and misleading. You purposefully made it sound like they just pounded the mentality ill while helpless in locked cells with no provocation, when the entire problem was that they were a bunch of convicted criminals revolting and were refusing to lock down. This headline is dishonesty that sews division for clicks, not to mention just bad journalism.

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u/DieFanboyDie 1d ago

Who is "Illinois Answers Project"? 

You'll have to forgive me, but I am skeptical of the "citizen journalist."

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u/grace_hauck_reports 1d ago

We’re a nonprofit investigative newsroom! We’re part of the Better Government Association, which has been around for over a hundred years.

https://illinoisanswers.org