Illinois
Rancid, unsafe water at Illinois prisons threatens health, violates human rights, groups allege
Brian Harrington remembers the water in prison.
Sometimes it was brown or maybe it had black particles. Sometimes it smelled bad, he said.
“You would wake up and it smelled like a sewer,” he said.
Harrington was 14 when he was sentenced to 25 years for murder. He served just over half that time before Gov. J.B. Pritzker granted him a rare clemency in 2020.
Now Harrington advocates for more humane treatment and better conditions for those incarcerated in the state prisons.
He’s part of a coalition of groups that Monday petitioned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, asking that officials there step in and require the Pritzker administration to provide clean water to prisoners.
The petition alleges “chronic and systemic shortcomings” within the state’s departments of corrections, public health and environmental protection.
“A prison sentence is not a license for the state to deprive people of basic necessities,” the groups said in their petition.
Brian Harrington recalls foul-smelling, dirty water when he served time in Illinois prisons. Now he advocates for inmates.
Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times
The allegedly rancid water at Illinois prisons violates the federal Safe Drinking Water Act, and the U.S. EPA should step in, the groups led by the Coalition to Decarcerate Illinois said.
The issues have been going on for decades at some prisons, the groups said, adding that there were examples of problems reported even in recent weeks and months.
In January, Legionella bacteria was found at the Joliet Treatment Center, leading to “health conditions like diarrhea and throat irritation,” the groups said.
In March, prisoners complained that the Centralia Correctional Center reported that water service was cut off and that sewage was flowing out of drains and flooding floors.
At one downstate institution, Pontiac Correctional Center, prisoners “report a black oily substance in their water so significant that they use mattress stuffing, sheets and T-shirts to filter the water,” the document to EPA claims. Complaints from incarcerated people date back at least six years at Pontiac, the petitioners said.
At Pontiac and elsewhere, inmates have complained about high blood pressure, headaches and other health issues, the groups said.
Pritzker spokesman Alex Gough said in a statement that the EPA receives water-quality data for prisons from the state, and Illinois environmental officials separately inspect the institutions.
“The most recent drinking water quality data did not reflect any violations of applicable state or federal law,” Gough said.
Problems with water were discovered last year, however, and are being dealt with, he added.
Following inspections in 2022 and 2023, state corrections officials “developed plans to enhance its drinking water infrastructure” and entered into agreements with Illinois environmental regulators.
After complaints, state officials look into the matter, he said, adding that “recent complaints have included concerns regarding cloudy water, discolored water or odor.”
A state consultant’s report last year noted that the Illinois Department of Corrections had $2.5 billion in deferred maintenance, the advocacy groups said.
Last month, the governor announced a plan to rebuild the Stateville Correctional Center, a maximum-security facility near Joliet, and Logan Correctional Center, a women’s prison just north of Springfield.
Harrington, an artist who calls himself King Moosa, is thankful to Pritzker for freeing him from prison.
Now, he hopes the governor will act to help others who are incarcerated.
Millions of asylum seekers have been impacted as caseloads have grown
A general crackdown on immigration courts the administration sees as liberal has led to the firing of dozens of immigration judges.
Recent polls show President Donald Trump’s approval ratings continue to dip as the war in Iran endures and national gas prices float above $4.
One such poll conducted by CNN/SSRS illustrates widespread upset among Americans with regards to Trump’s handling of the economy and inflation. Here’s how Trump’s approval ratings look nationally and within Illinois, as of April 20.
Donald Trump approval rating: CNN
Only 31% of Americans approve of how Trump is handling the economy, compared to 39% in January 2026, according to the poll.
The decline in approval on the issue is even higher among Republicans, especially Republicans under 45 years old, according to CNN.
In the poll, President Donald Trump received his worst approval rating yet in either of his two terms on the economy.
CNN findings show about two-thirds of Americans say Trump’s policies have worsened economic conditions, and 27% say they approve of Trump’s handling of inflation.
CNN also reported 63% of Americans say the prices at the pump have caused financial hardship in their household, including 15% calling it “severe.”
The poll, conducted March 26-30 among 1,201 U.S. adults, found 35% approve of Trump’s job performance overall. The poll’s margin of error is plus or minus 3.2 percentage points.
One poll respondent told CNN and the pollster about the most important issue facing the country: “Prices! Everything is so expensive. Makes it very difficult to do anything other than work and go home. Trips to the grocery store are ridiculous! Between gas and grocery prices, we are poor!”
Trump addressed the concerns about gas prices in his address to the nation on April 1, saying the Strait of Hormuz would reopen when the conflict was over and the prices would fall again.
Trump reaffirmed his promise about the strait on April 18, saying his administration had “very good conversations going on” with Iran after the country said the strait would not be reopened.
Donald Trump approval rating in Illinois: Civiqs
Trump’s job approval rating in Illinois, as of April 18, according to data from online survey platform Civiqs, is as follows:
- Approve — 32%.
- Disapprove — 65%.
- Neither — 4%.
Donald Trump national approval rating: Civiqs
Trump’s national approval rating as of April 13, according to data from Civiqs, is as follows:
- Approve — 39%.
- Disapprove — 57%.
- Neither — 4%.
Donald Trump approval rating in Illinois: The Economist
Trump has a -36% net approval rating in Illinois as of April 20, according to data from The Economist.
Donald Trump national approval rating: The Economist
Trump’s national approval rating as of April 20, according to data from The Economist, is as follows:
- Approve — 38%.
- Disapprove — 56%.
- Don’t know — 7%.
Trump, Iran War approval rating: Pew Research Center
A Pew Research study conducted in mid-March found that about six-in-ten Americans (61%) approve of Trump’s handling of the conflict in Iran, with 39% approving.
A report released in early April found that the largest concern for most Americans as a result of the conflict is higher gas prices, with 69% saying they are “extremely” or “very” concerned about the issue.
Other Trump approval rating polls as of April 20
Here is a look at some other polling aggregators to understand how CNN/SSRS’s poll compares to the average Trump approval numbers as of April 20:
RealClearPolitics Poll Average: 41.2% approve, 56.6% disapprove.
The New York Times: 40% approve, 56% disapprove.
Silver Bulletin: 39.7% approve, 56.4% disapprove.
Which president has the lowest approval rating ever?
Although Trump has dropped to a historic low in approval rating polls this term so far, he hit a 34% low in the first term and other recent presidents such as Joe Biden hit a 36% low, Barack Obama hit a 40% low, George W. Bush hit a 25% low and Bill Clinton hit a 37% low, according to the Gallup polls, whose recorded lowest rating was Harry Truman with 22%.
As for the highest presidential approval ratings, George W. Bush holds the highest approval rating ever recorded at 90%, while his father, George H. Bush holds the second highest at 89%.
Trump is the only president that has not reached a 50% or higher approval to date in the Gallup polls’ history.
CENTRALIA, Ill. – An investigation is underway after multiple people were shot Sunday in Centralia, Illinois, according to a report from WFCN News in southern Illinois.
FOX 2 has confirmed the Illinois State Police is investigating a shooting and taking over the investigation, but ISP could not confirm many further details as of 9 p.m. Sunday.
“The investigation is in its infancy and to protect the integrity of the investigation, no additional details will be released at this time,” ISP said in a statement to FOX 2.
According to WFCN News, the shooting happened around 5 p.m. near the 900 block of East Kell Street in Centralia. Multiple law enforcement agencies have since responded to scene and multiple victims are hospitalized, according to the report.
It’s unclear how many people may have been injured and what led up to the shooting.
Centralia, Illinois is about 70 miles, or just over an hour, east of St. Louis.
This is a developing story. FOX 2 will update as more information becomes available.
The National Weather Service has teams of storm surveryors in the field April 18 investigating several reports of severe storms and tornado touch downs across eastern Iowa, northwest Illinois and northeast Missouri.
According to the weather service’s website, windgusts of up to 60 to 70 mph along with teacup-sized hail and several tornadoes were reported April 17.
Many homes and outbuildings were damaged, trees were uprooted and power lines were downed in Lena, Illinois, where the most significant damage occurred, the site pointed out.
Very strong winds also were reported near Washington, Iowa, and Colmar, Illinois, where several outbuildings and grain bins were destroyed.
The weather service received reports of confirmed and possible tornadoes in the areas of Lena, Pecatonica, Shirland, Rockton, Roscoe and Capron.
The teams will be assessing damage this weekend into next week along with county emergency management teams to determine what types of storms occurred and their paths.
Dozens of power outages were reported, as well.
As of the afternoon of April 18, ComEd was reporting 85 active power outages across northern Illinois, down from 241 on April 17, and 6,751 customers affected, down from more than 18,000.
The bulk of those outages and the most customers impacted are concentrated in Jo Daviess and Stephenson counties.
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