Please don't overlook the restaurant next door to this place which is cool as well and worth…read morechecking out. The jail is really cool, especially the history of this building from pushing the button. You can walk in the jail too and I wouldn't mind if the Gardner, IL Police put me in here for the night as well solely for the nostalgia

Very appreciative of the security provided here and thankful that no weapons (including cell…read morephones) are allowed inside. The area surrounding the location was littered the last time I visited there, so I'll probably be going back to assist with some form of clean up.

By far the worst escape room experience I ever had. No clues or hints anywhere on how to escape…read more The paid actors takes there roles seriously and won't help. I will not return to this place ever!

Go figure, a prison with a 1 star review...seems sort of fitting, doesn't it?…read more I've been visiting an inmate here for several years now, and I have to say that for the most part, this place personifies government workers in Illinois. We are on their time. If it's your first time visiting Stateville, get ready to be denied access, even if you're on the inmate's approved list. It's happened to pretty much everyone that I know. They try to tell you you're not on the list. They tried telling me that maybe he forgot to put his sister down because he put his OTHER sister on the list and he needed to put both of us on there (uh, not the case. My brother may be an idiot for other reasons, but not putting his immediate family on a visitors list so that he could have contact with the outside world and food other than the garbage they serve on the line isn't something that he would do). On multiple occasions, we've been check in (and check in, and searched, and checked in, and checked in one more time, just to make sure that we - two females - didn't switch identities with any of the male inmates) and assigned a visiting table just to wait over an hour and a half for the inmate to come downstairs. Apparently the guards only get the prisoners if they feel like it. The vending machines used to be way overpriced, but I guess enough visitors complained (wrote to their elected officials in Springfield) that the prices are now somewhat reasonable. What hasn't been fixed, however, are the machines themselves. Every time we go, at least one machine is out of order. More often than not, there is little to no food in them (and I use the term "food" very loosely) and/or it's expired (especially the fruit/veggie packs). I've been told that the infrastructure of the actual prison is deteriorating badly, with crumbling walls where daylight can be seen through the cracks (real safe, right?). The prison is filled beyond capacity, and with the recent closing of yet another prison, it's even more so. Correctional Facilities are supposed to be rehabilitative, but I've seen my brother's mental state continually decline as a result of being locked up here as he awaits an appeal (another story for another time). The gangs are pretty fierce, even though they pretty much leave unaffiliated people alone (Neutrons are what they're called), and it's not uncommon for the whole place to go on lockdown when a fight erupts (between rival gang members or sometimes between guards and inmates). With such a savage environment, essentially a walled hole where people to go be forgotten, it's no wonder that there are so many repeat offenders.

Tour guides are wonderful! Very friendly and knowledgeable. More than happy to spend as much time…read moreas you need answering questions and adding extra interesting bits of information.

Really cool. I recently did the evening tour which ends when the sun is almost gone for the day…read more The guided tour itself is really informative, you get 90 minutes of history and walk a total of about a mile inside the old prison grounds. You get to walk inside the West cellblock and a few other buildings. Sadly, several of them were burned by morons during the period between 2003-2017 when this was totally vacant and unused. But funding comes in little by little to make repairs. The old portion of the prison was designed by the same architect who designed the famous Chicago water tower. There are some newer elements as renovations were done in the 1950s and 1990s. The docents are very knowledgeable and have good stories to tell about the infamous former inhabitants of the prison. If you want to save a little money you can do a self guided tour as well.

Why is it a state run facility run by a handful of employees?????????????????? The inmates cannot…read moreget visitors and are locked down because people are too lazy to work and call in ALL the time and they just don't hire enough employees. Lazy employees are known to not let prisoners out because they just don't feel like dealing with it. I come from 8 hours away just to be told visitation is canceled due to not enough employees so now it costs gas money, time off work, hotel, food, roughly $400-500 each visit just to be turned away, DO BETTER ILLINOIS, THIS IS WHY EVERYONE WANTS TO LEAVE THIS AWFUL STATE, AND, when prisoners have signed up and are doing college classes, make damn sure you have a teacher there for them, 2 weeks without classes because you are short handed??????????? Unacceptable and will be addressed whomever I can get a hold of, write, call, email!!! Start being accountable for yourselves and do better!!!

I cannot believe a facility cannot hire enough staff to manage it. This place cancels visits and…read moreall due to not enough staff , and puts them on lock down . , they need there visits for there family's and to keep there heads straight .Prisoners get kept in cells for long periods without the care they need, due to not enough staff. Something needs to be done.

I have been coming into CCJ as a volunteer for a good number of years now and it is the high point…read moreof my week every week. As the weeks have added together into years it has walked away with my most prized experience year after year. Coming here has taught me that I cannot receive but by giving. My years of trying to gain for myself by taking always availed less and less until I was left with little more than too much stuff and too many things. Nothing more. I bring an AA meeting directly to offenders who sit in each other's rot all day with no hope and no inspiration to break their cycles of relapse and failure. I bring hope to them and I can see it come back to me in their smiles and expressions of gratitude. There is nothing like it in the world! I read a lot about the intolerance and ignorance of the guards but my extended experience has been the polar opposite. I get out of my relationships with them what I put into them. Nothing more and nothing less. They are exposed to extreme toxic behavior that comes down from the top and up from the bottom every single day. I might end up acting out my own hostilities if I had to experience the poisonous environment that they vocationally live in. I challenge any normal human to tell me they wouldn't! But when I leave my AA experience and am able to walk out the front door a free man, I experience the sensation of flight for a brief moment. A total free fall escape from the dungeons and back into my life which, for these few moments, seems so blessed and blissful by comparison to what I have just experienced.

for anyone that messes up and needs to go to jail, this is a place to go…read more this is not a place that you wanna go to and be at. It's got a lot of murderers and people that are in there for bad things. Keep yourself straight and stay out of there.

I recently had jury duty in the "George N. Leighton" criminal courthouse. By the way, Judge…read moreLeighton has a great story of his own and I encourage you all to Google and find out. I saw a few yelpers' reviews on the courthouse itself and their experiences. There was no cafeteria anymore. Instead, there were vending machines, featuring Farmer's Fridge and other generic ones, inside the jurors' waiting room. Overall, the offerings were quite decent and eating surely would make the time go by a bit faster! I did use the bathroom a few times and the janitor came through several times to tidy things up. Fortunately, we were dismissed early due to the defendant' plea deal. To be honest, I would love to be called to the court room and get that "voir dire" process started. Anyway, I was fine either way since it would be a long way traveling back home and traffic wasn't heavy in the late morning/early afternoon. The information video seemed to be updated from the last time I served my first jury duty (sometime 2017), except Judge Timothy C. Evans' introduction filed in the 90's still existed. That part could use some new technology because it didn't sync with the rest of the contents. People couldn't be any nicer! Everyone I talked to was polite. I almost wanted to use the lactation room, as I found out we were going to be dismissed soon. I opted out but the facility would be available for nursing moms and I bet the clerk would be happy to help. For transportation options, CTA bus #94 drops passengers in front of the courtroom and parking lot. Jurors can park for free and there is an instruction on the summon. The Pink Line California station is approximately of a 10-min walk and it seems safe during the day, yet exercise your own discretion.

I was affirmed to be serving jury duty in person at this criminal Court in Chicago. Today, it was…read morean epic subzero day where most schools were closed. Jury duty members and members attending their court date arrived and entered the same entrance across the street from the parking garage. Getting in around 8:30, an hour earlier than the reported time, seemed to be a good idea, however, there was a bit of a lack of efficiency in the way the lines were queued up. If you are attending courts for any reason and you are not in jury duty, you must check your mobile phone or not bring it into the building at all. If you have a summons to be on jury duty, you are allowed to bring in a laptop, tablet, mobile device while the mobile device is officially allowed. There is a Starbucks stand after the metal detectors at entrance. But as the office of the clerk says, that thing is fake. They never opened it. So look at your hopes up. The cafeteria doesn't exist anymore on the first floor, you are relegated to vending machines, one of which is a farmers fridge. On the second and third floor. Floor. You will head to the third floor and spend the majority of your day through 4:30 p.m. I was selected shortly after lunch. At the roll call, your panel number paper is adorned with a red jury member badge. The 30 to 34 people seemed to include four to five panels. We were shepherded down, across and up to another location where the court rooms are. The walk from the third floor jury duty, waiting room to the courtrooms were through a few ornate corridors and stairwells. I suspect this building is pretty cool inside architecturally speaking. The room we were in was circular and the audio was well adjusted. I do not envy the people who have the hold court everyday. The judge asks the same questions to each of the first 28 people who were selected to be in the court room. There are rest rooms in the juror room (if you get picked after the completion of voir dire) or outside of the courtrooms at the exterior edge of the floor. Restrooms are one person at a time. This is the furthest I've participated in jury duty. At the end of the day, which ended about 5pm, I was not selected to be a jurer. The intent of this trial was to last through this Friday, at worst. Pay for the day is $35 USD and parking is free.

I wanted to stop and get a drink, and much to our surprise, this was a historic landmark. This gas…read morestation closed in 1999 and has stayed the same since then. The facility is clean and clean of any hazards. Inside the garage, there are a few maps that you can stick a pin in for your location of where you live and also a book to sign for the same purpose. It's a cool spot to check out. The gentlemen there were kind and provided some information about the place. Also advising, they are open from May thru October. There are also things that can be purchased suck as shirts, hats, key chains, stickers, and yoyo, to name a few. All cas, so be sure to be prepared. There are a few spots for photos and signs with info. One of the info recordings outside did not work, but the photo was there with info. They accept donations to help keep the location open as well, if you feel so inclined to do so. And, I didn't get my soda, but I got to experience this cool bit of history on Route 66 in Dwight, IL.

It's a must stop on Route 66 it's a step back in time to a time forgotten when things were simpler…read more They have a lot of photo opportunities and if you are lucky they will be open so you can take a look inside