Thomson prison to permanently house low-security inmates

THOMSON – Thomson prison will remain a low-security prison permanently, the Bureau of Prisons announced Friday.

It’s a move that will improve conditions for prison employees, the BOP said in the news release announcing the decision.

“The FBOP is dedicated to increasing employment levels across the agency. Eliminating the need for mandatory overtime and augmentation is a vital goal that the FBOP is striving for with relentless commitment,” and the conversion will assist in that goal, it said.

The prison also will reduce the use of noncustody employees in custody positions, according to the release.

The trouble-plagued federal lockup, a high-security penitentiary with a minimum-security satellite camp, was temporarily designated as low-security March 23.

At the time, the BOP said Thomson eventually would house 1,178 low-security inmates, and the camp would be unaffected.

As of Friday, there were 1,319 inmates – 1,189 at the Carroll County prison and 130 at its camp, according to the prison website.

As promised in March, all employees will retain their jobs, the BOP said.

“While we’re disappointed that this conversion will lead to a reduction in the number of full-time staff positions, we’re relieved that the facility will retain all of its current employees and will end the overuse of augmentation and overtime that created a great strain on Thomson’s employees.”

—  Illinois Democratic Congressional statement

“This decision follows the temporary placement of low-security individuals at the facility earlier this year to alleviate overcrowding at other low-security facilities throughout the FBOP,” the department said.

In April, the bureau began the process of transporting the more than 1,000 high-security inmates from its special management unit and its reintegration unit to other prisons in the federal system.

As a low-security facility, Thomson will begin offering expanded visiting opportunities while also providing First Step Act programs, the BOP said in March.

First Step Act opportunities for inmates include GED classes, English as a second language instruction, a work assessment system, release preparation programming, apprenticeship programs, advanced occupational education and vocational training.

The Illinois Democratic Congressional delegation – U.S. Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth and Rep. Eric Sorensen – released a statement welcoming the decision.

“This change is a decisive effort to address the many challenges the institution has faced in recent years while relieving some of the overpopulation pressures BOP is experiencing in low-security facilities nationwide,” according to the statement. “While we’re disappointed that this conversion will lead to a reduction in the number of full-time staff positions, we’re relieved that the facility will retain all of its current employees and will end the overuse of augmentation and overtime that created a great strain on Thomson’s employees.

“With this mission change and retention of all current employees, Thomson will be better equipped to become a safe and secure facility with a focus on rehabilitation and reentry.”

Thomson was a state correctional facility opened in 2001 that remained largely empty until it was acquired by the Bureau of Prisons in 2012. It opened in 2019 and has been understaffed since.

Both the prison and the union have been involved in efforts to recruit more staff by holding job fairs across the region. The Bureau of Prisons offered new incentives to address the worker shortage.

In 2022, an investigation by NPR and The Marshall Project found that the Thomson prison had five suspected homicides and two suspected suicides since its opening.

The Department of Justice investigated the deaths and also alleged mistreatment of inmates at the hands of staff.