DeKalb County
Its jail, located in Sycamore, has a capacity of 147.
DeKalb County has a population of 101,335 and is classified by the U.S. Department of Agriculture as “Metro - Counties in metro areas of 1 million population or more”.
Annual inspections
Between 2017 and 2025, the DeKalb County jail has failed one of nine Illinois Department of Corrections inspections.
| Year | Result | Violations cited |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Compliant | — |
| 2024 | Compliant | — |
| 2023 | Compliant | — |
| 2022 | Noncompliant | — |
| 2021 | Compliant | — |
| 2020 | Compliant | — |
| 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
DeKalb County reported 187 extraordinary or unusual incidents at its jail between 2019 and 2025 — 18.5 per 10,000 residents, the 21st highest rate of the 92 Illinois counties with a jail.
Among the 36 metropolitan counties it is 12th; 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
DeKalb CountyMetropolitan counties Every other county with a jail
Most frequent categories
- Restraints used129
- Fight among detainees29
- Suicide attempt14
- OC spray used14
- Taser used9
A single report can fall into more than one category.
Reported incidents by year
Deaths in custody
Between 2019 and 2025, 1 person died in custody of the DeKalb County sheriff. It appears in state oversight data.
Each death in the DeKalb County jail
Counted by the state
No deaths in custody were identified at the DeKalb County jail.
Illinois Answers withheld the names of some of the deceased at the request of their families.
Data compiled 2026-09-15. Methodology.