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SECTION INSIDE
ROCKETS MAKE A CLEAN SWEEP IN DOUBLE-HEADER BASEBALL, B1
STERLING HIGH, A10
TELEGRAPH Monday, April 25, 2016
SERVING DIXON AND THE SURROUNDING AREA SINCE 1851
A CLOSER LOOK | ILLINOIS PRISONS
Prisoners shouldn’t go it alone Lawmakers push to restrict the use of solitary confinement; officials push back BY IVAN MORENO Associated Press
SPRINGFIELD – Brian Nelson’s years in solitary confinement left him terrified of other people, and he says he can still taste the concrete dust from his cell, even though he’s been free since 2010. The 51-year-old is afraid to ride the bus, he takes five psychotropic drugs and sees a psychiatrist every week. Even when he’s at a park surrounded
by grass, he says everything starts turning gray and he remembers how tiny air pockets in the walls kicked up dust whenever he would clean his cell at a now-shuttered maximum security prison in Tamms, in Illinois’ southern tip. There he was confined for the final 12 years of a 26-year sentence for murder and armed robbery. “Those four walls beat me down so bad,” he told members of an Illinois
House committee during a recent emotional hearing on the state’s solitary confinement practices. Stories like Nelson’s have led Illinois lawmakers to push prisons to restrict the use of solitary confinement, joining a national movement that has policymakers rethinking the longstanding form of punishment that critics say has a profound psychological impact on inmates. Legislation sponsored by Demo-
cratic Rep. La Shawn Ford, of Chicago, would limit solitary confinement to no more than 5 consecutive days and 5 total days during a 150-day period. That would be a dramatic change from the current rules, which allow prisons to isolate inmates for weeks or years at a time. The bill, which received the CONFINEMENT CONTINUED ON A5
ELECTIONS
SAUK VALLEY COMMUNITY COLLEGE
Teens take up the cause of voter education Pair of Sterling students help organize event to educate voters BY CHRISTOPHER HEIMERMAN cheimerman@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5523 @CHeimerman_SVM
Photos by Alex T. Paschal/apaschal@saukvalley.com
Ronin Benz, 3, of Madison, Wisconsin, checks out a lighted play table at Saturday’s Sauk Valley Community College Child Fair. Benz was in the area visiting family.
Learning, for the fun of it
BY CHRISTOPHER HEIMERMAN cheimerman@saukvalley.com 815-625-3600, ext. 5523 @CHeimerman_SVM
A day at the fair was filled with fun and education for children Online extra
Click on this story at saukvalley.com to check out sights and sounds from the 32nd annual Child Fair at Sauk Valley Community College.
DIXON – Wall to wall, mall to mall, Sauk Valley Community College was a gigantic playground Saturday during the 32nd annual Child Fair. Pirates, princesses, Power Rangers and more played games, blasted emergency vehicles’ horns, petted animals, met movie stars and more. Whether they knew it or not, they were learning a lot, too. “It’s geared toward making them aware of health and wellness, but the event makes the learning part of it fun,” organizer Brenda Helms said.
STERLING – Unsure of how to vote, let alone who to vote for, this November? Sterling High School senior Jennifer Contreras can relate. The 18-year-old president of Latino Club at the high school admits she didn’t know quite enough about the presidential candidates, so she sat out the recent primary election. “When I saw the results, I wish I would’ve been more informed about each party,” she said. “Now that I have more knowledge, it makes me more excited to take part in it. We all know it’s going to be an interesting race.” Jennifer Since then, she’s done her homework Contreras and, along with the club’s vice president, Xena Trujillo, has organized a nonpartisan educational event for 6 p.m. Tuesday night at City Hall, 212 Third Ave. You won’t hear much about the candidates, but by the time you leave, not knowing how to vote won’t be an acceptable excuse come Nov. 8. In addition to Xena mayors Skip Lee of Sterling and Li Arellano Trujillo Jr. of Dixon, and state Rep. Mike Smiddy, D-Hillsdale, Whiteside County Clerk Dana Nelson will be at the event to clear up any and all confusion about registering and filling out a ballot. “She knows everything about the ballots,” Contreras said. Her parents, Modesta and Lucio, left Michoacån, Mexico, to become American citizens in 2007, and her mother was thrilled to be part of another historic election – that of President Barack Obama. VOTING CONTINUED ON A5
LEARNING CONTINUED ON A5
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Kellen Metzger, 3, of Rock Falls was part of a dynamic duo of Batmans that struck a pose Saturday afternoon at Sauk Valley Community College’s Child Fair. Kids were encouraged to attend the event dressed as their favorite movie character and walk the red carpet. Other activities included a bounce house and inflatable obstacle course, car seat safety checks, interactive booths, exhibit displays and more.
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TODAY’S EDITION: 20 PAGES 2 SECTIONS VOL. 164 ISSUE 252
INDEX
ABBY ................... A7 COMICS ............... A8 CROSSWORD......B8
LIFESTYLE ........... A7 LOTTERY ............. A2 NATION ................ A9
A simple gesture was a picture-perfect example of the countless acts of kindness on last week’s Honor Flight. Dateline Dixon: A3
Michael Krabbenhoeft/mkrabbenhoeft@saukvalley.com
Ronald Kruger looks for names on the Vietnam Memorial on Thursday during the Honor Flight.
OBITUARIES ........ A4 OPINION .............. A6 POLICE ................ A2
Today’s weather High 76. Low 55. More on A3.
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