CHARLESTON, Ill. (WAND) – Since the 2024 IDOC inspection, the Coles County Sheriff’s Office has made several upgrades to the county jail.
Those include purchasing new mattresses, adding a padded cell, expanding mental health counseling hours, and providing pro se inmates with a laptop for legal discovery.
Construction is also underway on a new medical observation unit, which is expected to be completed by the end of the year. The project will expand medical observation cells, improve the nurse’s office, and create a better overall floor plan.
“It’s very important, especially for the care of the inmates," Sheriff Martin told WAND News
Martin explained that the county has also invested in electronic medical recordkeeping, upgraded Homewav kiosks and Guardian RFID observation systems, and installed additional tablets in housing units.
One of the largest areas of investment has been mental health. Martin said the jail has “more than doubled” the hours inmates can meet with a counselor.
“We’ve more than doubled our original hours for that, so they can help us address substance abuse issues and mental health issues,” Martin said
He added that the push came after inmates with severe mental illness could not immediately be transferred to state facilities due to a lack of space. That sparked discussions on how to intervene earlier.
“We were hoping that by going through our contracted medical provider, we could make more hours available earlier to people with, say, substance abuse problems before they spiraled downward and got in that cycle that’s so hard to break,” Martin explained.
Sheriff Martin credited federal COVID-19 relief funds and opioid settlement money with helping the county pay for many of the upgrades.
Despite construction challenges and routine disruptions, Martin said his staff hasn’t missed a beat. “It’s been kind of a state of upheaval with things being moved and torn out,” he said. “But they haven’t missed a beat. They’ve gone right on with it because they also understand, ultimately, this is for the betterment of our inmates … and it’s also going to help my corrections staff do their job better.”
Construction on the medical observation unit is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
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