SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) - The families of two inmates who died at the Iroquois County Jail in August 2020 continuing to demand answers. 

We've told you about the continuous fight by families and activists for the sudden deaths of Andre Maiden and Jason Fancher. One year later, they are not stopping until they get answers.

"It's been a year today, my son was unjustifiably being taken from me," said Alta Young, Maiden's mom.

Andre Maiden and Jason Fancher died just 12 hours apart at the Iroquois County Jail while under the supervision of Sheriff Derek Hagen. An autopsy report said one of the two inmates died of an overdose. Yet the families of Maiden and Fancher said this was all a case of medical negligence. 

Young said she is still grieving her son's loss everyday.
 
"(It's) like my soul has been ripped my body, it's unbearable," she said. "The possibility to breathe is painful to my lungs."
 
She said she has no closure. Maiden's sister is also struggling to cope.
 
"To go through it every day, to not know what happened to my brother is torture. I never could imagine my big brother's dying, being taken from us by the Iroquois County Jail," she said.  
 
Fancher's mom, Jerry Craighead, told WAND News she still does not know what happened.
 
"I've not even been inside the jail, I would like to see what would happen. I want know why it happened," Craighead said. "Why was he not taken for assistance, but he was begging for help? He couldn't breathe." 
 
Local activists - a part of the Illinois Prisoner Rights Coalition - continue to fight alongside the families. One of the co-founders of the coalition said she is confused on why the facility is still up and running.
 
"If a facility cannot keep people alive, cannot provide what some with the most basic of human constitutional and civil liberties, then that the institution does not have a right to exist," said Sophia Bos-Shadi.
 
The families and activists are now demanding answers as to what happened inside the jail. They tell WAND Illinois State Police are still investigating. WAND News reached out to ISP, which provided this statement.
 
"The Illinois State Police (ISP) Division of Criminal Investigation met with the families of Andre Maiden and Jason Fancher today (August 26, 2021) to update them on the status of this open and ongoing investigation. ISP leaders also met with organizers of the Illinois Prisoner Rights Commission to discuss the limited release of information related to those cases. While the ISP remain committed to transparency and accountability, we also recognize the complex nature of these types of investigations and the necessity to carefully consider the release of information so as not to compromise the investigation."
 
The Fancher family has filed a formal legal suit against Sheriff Hagen, Iroquois County, and several correctional officers at the Iroquois County Jail. They said they won't stop until they have closure to properly grieve their loved ones.Â