Fraternal Order of Police Illinois Corrections Lodge 263

02/20/2025

Please consider donating to the Memorial Fund for Louisville Metro Correctional Officer Michael Wehdah

We will continue praying for his family and coworkers and for resolve to this tragedy.

02/20/2025

Our thoughts are with our Brothers and Sisters of Louisville Corrections FOP Lodge 77- morning the tragic loss of Correctional Officer Michael Wehdah.

I’m sorry to share that we have lost one of our Metro Government colleagues. On Sunday, a body was found near the intersection of 27th and Cedar. The body was identified as 44-year-old Michael Wehdah a Louisville Metro Corrections officer.

Officer Wehdah immigrated to our community from Liberia several years ago and his wife and teenage son were recently able to join him.

If anyone has information about this crime, we hope they will come forward to help bring closure for the Wehdah family. You can submit an anonymous tip here: https://www.p3tips.com/tipform.aspx?ID=563 #

Louisville Metro Police Department

02/20/2025

NY judge orders a stop to Correctional Officers Strike

Court documents obtained by WIVB News 4 show the state Department of Corrections maintains the Taylor Law deems the strike illegal.

02/20/2025

NY Judge orders striking Correctional Officers back to work!

Gov. Kathy Hochul began sending the National Guard to New York’s prisons, where officers have refused to come to work in protest of what they say are hazardous conditions.

02/20/2025

NY Governor calls in National Guard to cover Strike

The officers are calling for better working conditions and the rollback of prison reforms.

02/20/2025

NY State investigating lockdown/Strike

Prison strikes spread to additional facilities across New York Wednesday as governor called up National Guard; State Police are also assisting with security

02/20/2025

NY how many prisons involved

Prison strikes were spreading across New York Wednesday at a breakneck pace, with dozens of prisons affected. Here's what we know now.

02/20/2025

NY Prison Strike

Wildcat strikes have spread to over half of the state’s prisons.

02/19/2025

Danville firing range reopening being opposed

https://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/courts-police-fire/vermilion-advantage-opposing-reopening-of-firing-range-at-danville-correctional-center/article_57d537e6-ed4e-11ef-b7b6-e393248867d1.html #

The prison sits less than 2 miles from Lynch Road, which is home to large portion of the city’s significant economic development over the past couple decades.

02/18/2025

State of Ohio introduces “Andys Law” to address prison staffing, officer safety

In part, Johnson's proposed bill would do the following:
Strengthen penalties for inmates who injure or kill correctional staff
Give $1 million to the Ohio Attorney General's office to prosecute those cases
Change the qualifications for the ODRC Director position
Require the ODRC to pay for the healthcare of the spouse of any correctional staff who was killed in the line of duty — until they remarry.
Johnson said the healthcare portion of the bill was created because of the complications the Lansing family ran into.

staffing shortages are to blame for Lansing's death.
"I believe if there was another officer there that it could have been preventable. And I believe that the state of Ohio failed Andrew Lansing that day," he said.
Days after Lansing's death, ODRC Director Annette Chambers-Smith confirmed that the state had an 8% vacancy rate for correctional staff. She said RCI's vacancy rate was 11%.
"When we created extra positions for death row and a couple of security positions that the warden requested as well as opening up a housing unit that had previously been closed, that created a 40-person shortage," she said.

To address this, "Andy's Law" would also require the ODRC to hire a consulting firm to improve hiring and retention methods.

Rep. Jean Schmidt told 10TV that the committee is waiting to make recommendations to RCI, ODRC and Gov. Mike DeWine after the OSHP completed its investigation.

02/16/2025

A letter from the National Fraternal Order of Police in support of the Marc Fischer Memorial Interdiction of Fentanyl in Postal Mail at Federal Prisons bill.

"It has been increasingly (severe) over the last four years," said Scot Ward, president of the Illinois Fraternal Order of Police Corrections Lodge 263. "The lack of control over trafficking, lack of accountability or sanctions of criminal offenders and lack of pro-law-enforcement legislation has only aided (the) problem."

Ward too referred to it as a "national systemic problem."

As of Feb. 12, the legislation has been backed by the National Fraternal Order of Police, per a letter from National President Patrick Yoes, which cited Bureau of Justice Statistics showing a 600% increase in the number of victims who died by drug or alcohol intoxication in state prisons from 2001 to 2018, and a 200% increase in county jails over the same period. The bill would only apply to federal prisons.

“We remain optimistic the Trump administration and Attorney General Pam Bondi will take decisive action to address the trafficking of deadly drugs through the U.S. mail system into federal prisons," Zumkehr wrote. "This crisis demands immediate federal intervention before another law enforcement officer is killed or seriously injured."

FULL ARTICLE ATTACHED

Working in a federal prison, even a minimum-security one, comes with unique challenges.

02/14/2025

Thoughts on what you are hearing/experiencing.

When the Illinois Department of Corrections shut down the century-old Stateville Correctional Center in September, officials transferred 278 inmates convicted of murder and dozens more serving time for violent crimes to other lockups across the state

02/14/2025

Disturbance-Take over in NY

The disturbance at Collins Correctional Facility led to a lockdown as officials and union leaders warn of rising violence and understaffing

02/14/2025

Florida Corrections, killed in off duty targeted attack

Palm Beach County Corrections Deputy Basil Powell was ambushed outside his home; the sheriff's office said the incident is "not related to his role as a corrections deputy"

02/14/2025

Florida Ex*****on

The Florida Department of Corrections is proceeding with the ex*****on of James Dennis Ford as planned.

02/13/2025

The AP did a decent job with some of the information here sort of calling out IDOC on “reclassification” but definitely in a LIGHT WAY-
What they don’t do is express the POLITICS and RHETORIC we experience with IDOC and GOVERNORS OFFICE - but you have to be here and live it to know its common place unfortunately!

They also make the moves seem limited in number because what they don’t tell is the huge number of inmates that were moved prior to this over a course
Of time before the “plan got out”

One interesting fact they do mention is “corrections denied the AP public records request for information, the news agency is appealing that decision”

Good luck because IDOC either them or at the direction of the Govs office will continue to deny requests for information/FOIA and the appeals - even knowing we have the information already..

They continue to get exposed and they just don’t care
We Need to be diligently reporting accurate information as it happens not how they want it told, and continue to fight for more transparency and honesty about the conditions we face, legislatively and electorally.

When the Illinois Department of Corrections shut down the century-old Stateville Correctional Center in September, officials transferred 278 inmates convicted of murder and dozens more serving time for violent crimes

02/12/2025

Karina’s Law which allows law enforcement to confiscate fi****ms from people whose FOID card has been taken away due to the issuance of orders of protection was signed yesterday by Pritzker. This is what it means for the Center for Prevention of Abuse

PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD) — Victims and survivors of domestic violence now have another option to help protect themselves. On Monday, Gov. JB Pritzker signed House Bill 4144 also known as Karina& #8…