Boone County
Its jail, located in Belvidere, has a capacity of 128.
Boone County has a population of 53,313 and is classified by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as “Metro - Counties in metro areas of 250,000 to 1 million population”.
Annual inspections
Between 2017 and 2025, the Boone County jail has failed two of nine Illinois Department of Corrections inspections.
| Year | Result | Violations cited |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Compliant | — |
| 2024 | Compliant | — |
| 2023 | Compliant | — |
| 2022 | Noncompliant |
|
| 2021 | Compliant | — |
| 2020 | Noncompliant |
|
| 2019 | Compliant | — |
| 2018 | Compliant | — |
| 2017 | Compliant | — |
Each violation links to the standard it cites in the Illinois County Jail Standards. Years link to the full inspection report for that year on the IDOC website.
Extraordinary or unusual incidents
Boone County reported 46 extraordinary or unusual incidents at its jail between 2019 and 2025 — 8.6 per 10,000 residents, the 40th highest rate of the 92 Illinois counties with a jail.
Among the 36 metropolitan counties it is 18th; those counties report a median of 8.3. The median for every county with a jail is 7.
A county reporting less could indicate lower incident rates or lower reporting rates.
Incidents per 10,000 residents
Boone CountyMetropolitan counties Every other county with a jail
Most frequent categories
- OC spray used18
- Restraints used13
- Suicide attempt10
- Assault on staff6
- Taser used3
A single report can fall into more than one category.
Reported incidents by year
Deaths in custody
No deaths in custody were identified at the Boone County jail.
Illinois Answers withheld the names of some of the deceased at the request of their families.
Data compiled 2026-09-15. Methodology.