Chicago:Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran in jail by choice

Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran's in the jailhouse now
With week in the clink, official intends to gain perspective on how to help inmates succeed after they have left prison
By Andrew L. Wang | Chicago Tribune reporter
7:39 PM CDT, August 20, 2008

Lake County Sheriff Mark Curran walked into the county jail in Waukegan on Wednesday wearing a gray suit and necktie, but before long he changed into the outfit he'll wear for the next week: a navy blue inmate uniform and a pair of ill-fitting, plastic jail slippers.

"It's somewhat surreal," said Curran, who was elected to his post in 2006 after stints as a county, state and federal prosecutor.

Moments before, jail deputies—who referred to Curran as "Sir"—booked him into the jail's system. He was fingerprinted, a nurse took his blood pressure ("139 over 88," he said. "Is that high?") and a deputy clipped a plastic identification bracelet on his right wrist. Then came the mug shot.

Rarely has the booking of an inmate at the jail drawn as much attention—as dozens of reporters, photographers and cameramen documented Curran's every move.
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