Southern Illinois News

In a June 19 Facebook post, Illinois state Rep. Paul Jacobs (R-Pomona) described his work in support of the residents of Choate Mental Health and Developmental Center.

"Continuing to work on Choate with some of the staff at Senator [Dale] Fowler's opening event for his golf outing," Jacobs said in the post. "It's great to be able to talk to the staff representatives to go over the direction for the facility. Choate United! Choate open to serve Illinoisans!"

In addition to social media, Jacobs joined News Radio WJPF and Tom Miller in a June 19 interview to further his discussion regarding Choate.

"With SIU [Southern Illinois University] coming in and doing an objective report, which is due June 30, it's going to give us direction not only for this mental health facility, but for all the ones that are state-owned," Jacobs said in the interview. "They all have complaints. They all have problems. But the press is still banging on about the 1,500 in a 10-year period, which is too many. Out of that, 7% were considered valid complaints. The inspector general was tasked with going back and looking at the 1,500 complaints, at the 7% that were valid—you're talking about 2014, 2006—that's already been litigated. Why do the press focus on the old? Why not focus on the new? I sat and talked with some of the kids the other day—the employees and staff—they love the people who are there."

In 2022, ProPublica and Lee Enterprises published a report focusing on a 24-year-old at Choate Mental Health and Developmental Center and the investigation of an incident that occurred in 2014. The investigation by the Illinois State Police totaled 700 pages. The individual, who has a diagnosis of autism, told investigators that it felt like he had been punched 100 times. The report also looked at other more recent complaints, such as a 2020 incident in which an employee was charged with battery for allegedly using his belt to whip a resident and a 2022 circumstance in which an employee was charged with criminal sexual assault of an individual who lived at Choate.

So the media is looking at more recent incidents, as the representative lamented that he wished they would.

It was announced in February that Choate would be repurposed and residents could be moved to other state-run facilities. In March, WSIL reported that the so-called transformation initiative would include new safety enhancements at Choate and other facilities, along with expanded support for families and individuals interested in community-based living.