Detainees who died at Cook County Jail in 2023 remembered in vigil

Sixteen people who died while in custody at Cook County Jail this year were remembered Wednesday evening in a vigil outside the lockup. “The best way to stop the loss of life at the Cook County Jail is to increase access to medical services and to decrease the number of people in this jail,” said Pastor Elle Dowd of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. (Tyler Pasciak LaRiviere/Sun-Times)

Religious leaders and community members held a vigil Wednesday to remember the 16 people who died this year while in custody at Cook County Jail. 

About two dozen people gathered outside the jail near 26th Street and California Avenue for the vigil, which was organized by the Coalition to End Money Bond. Attendees lit candles and read aloud the names of those who have died.