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Thomson CC Unofficial Website THOMSON CORRECTIONAL CENTER Thomson Correctional Center was built between May 1999 and November 2001. Its completion cost $140 million, but the state omitted opening costs from the 2002 budget, and Governor George H. Ryan called for a delay to the opening to save $50 million per year in operating costs. By 2009, the total cost to the the state of Illinois exceeded $170 million. The "Melon Capital of the World" Thomson Chamber of Commerce Website We have some of the finest watermelons and produce in the country. Thomson is at the intersection of Illinois Route 84 and Argo Fay Road nestled along the mighty Mississippi River, where Potter's Marsh (U.S. Corps of Engineers - Thomson Causeway Public Use Area) offers some of the finest camping in Northwestern Illinois. Thomson is also known for some of the finest duck hunting, deer hunting and turkey hunting in the state of Illinois. Fishing is great!! We have a wide variety of fish on the mighty Mississippi River, Huge Catfish, Walleye, Bass, Northern Pike, Bluegills and the list goes on and on. If you are planning on a quiet vacation or want to do some camping, come and see what Thomson has to offer. Thomson is also the site of the Illinois Department of Corrections newest maximum security prison - a $145 million facility which remains unopened. Guantanamo Treatment Better than Supermax RadioVice Online, S. McDonough, Jan. 7, 2010 The New Gitmo:  Thomson, Illinois Robert C. O'Brian, Newsmax.com - Dec. 28, 2009 MARION - United States Prison Note:  Marion (U.S. Prison) has been downgraded from Supermax to Medium  Security Mayor Says Marion Can Hold Gitmo Inmates The Southern, June 17, 2009 Marion Becomes Medium Security Prison The Southern (Illinoisan), January 11, 2007 Tourists View Former Supermax Prison Marion Daily Republican, Jan. 13, 2007 From Alcatraz to Marion U.S.P. Marion from an Ultralight Plane (Tom Kane Photo) Official Information A Brief History of Marion U.S.P. - Marion Overview Why Michael Williams was Sent to Marion Supermax Reform Legislation Julie Hamos - HB-2633 Suicide and Self-Mutilation Human Rights Watch Taken to the Max Isolation of Mentally Ill Criticized Chicago Tribune - 2002 How we Got the Security Housing Unit The Prison Inside the Prison Chad Briggs - Scrutinizing the Supermax McCarthur Justice Center

THOMSON, ILLINOIS:  Newest U.S. Supermax Prison Official Information Thomson Correctional Center is a safe maximum-security environment. Prison design, movement patterns and programming options will allow a strong community of order to be maintained. Inmates will be monitored under constant armed and electronic surveillance. Education, mental health services, recreation and skilled development will be available to inmates as mandatory and or voluntary programming options. These choices, under professional guidance, are opportunities for inmates to enrich their lives with the tools necessary for successful living. Thomson Correctional Center is a Level 1 adult male maximum-security facility comprised of 1,600 cells and eight housing units. The facility also has a 200-bed minimum-security unit. The facility is 146 acres and consists of 15 buildings, totaling 625,000 square feet. Construction in the cell houses is pre-cast, reinforced cement walls. The facility is enclosed by a 12-foot exterior fence and 15-foot interior fence, which includes a dual sided electric stun fence. Currently only the 200-bed minimum-security unit is open with no opening date set for the main complex. Transfer of Guantanamo Bay detainees (from Wikipedia) On December 15, 2009, President Barack Obama, via a Presidential memorandum, formally ordered the departments of Justice and Defense to arrange Federal ownership of the prison, and prepare for transfer there of both Federal prisoners and Guantanamo detainees.According to previous press reports, the acquisition plan contemplated housing there up to 100 inmates from the camp, in addition to other federal prisoners.The Federal Bureau of Prisons will erect a more secure perimeter fence, so its perimeter security exceeds supermax standards. The portion of the Thomson prison that will be used to house Guantanamo detainees will be operated by the Department of Defense, while the rest of the prison will be operated by the Federal Bureau of Prisons. CNN stated that before the decision was announced, many in the town welcomed the idea of Guantanamo prisoner housing in their town as the hopes will revitalize the town's economy and bring jobs. For and Against The Galena Gazette, Dec. 29, 2009 Jobs Trump Worries St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Dec. 27, 2009 A Fate Worse than Gitmo The Daily Beast, Dec. 23, 2009 Guantanamo Inmate Transfer "Wonderful" Mira Oberman, Agence France Presse, Dec. 19, 2009 TAMMS - Illinois' State Supermax Prison Rising Criticism of Tamms, Illinois Supermax James Ridgeway, Solitary Watch, Jan. 2, 2010 Official Information Location STATEVILLE SPEAKS BLOG Stateville Speaks - Loyola Stateville Speaks - Supermax LOYOLA UNIVERSITY - CHICAGO A Brief History of Tamms Scrutiny Promised for Illinois Supermax Prison AP, May 16, 2009 Gov. Seeks Review of Supermax Chicago Tribune, May 13, 2009 A Look Inside Illinois Only Supermax Prison Chicago Tribune, Feb. 27, 2009 Inside Illinois' super-max security prison Hell in a Cell Jeffrey Felshman, Chicago Reader, April 24, 2008 Tamms Year Ten Life in Tamms Supermax Prison Rights of Mentally Ill Prisoners at Tamms Tamms' Litigation Settlement Agreement Westefer v. Snyder (7th Cir., 2005) (Opinion and Order) Rasho v. Snyder (Order Denying Class Certification)

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