SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) - Illinois Department of Corrections officials say they have no copies of records related to a state prison inmate’s death now under FBI investigation because they surrendered everything to federal authorities.
The Associated Press requested documents regarding the May 17 incident at Western Illinois Correctional Center in Mount Sterling. An inmate injured that day later died. An FBI spokesman in Springfield declined comment on the investigation.
Corrections initially told the AP its records were exempt from disclosure. Now it says it has none, not even copies.
Thomas Raftery is an ex-FBI agent in Linwood, New Jersey. He says it’s highly unlikely the FBI would prohibit copies being made.
Chicago defense attorney Phillip Turner says Corrections is in trouble if it faces a civil lawsuit and has no documents.
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