Prison Libraries

In 2022, Jessica Hicklin left prison with a fully operational tech company that she founded while she was there. Unlocked Labs is now available in prisons in five states and recently came to the St. Louis City Justice Center.

Each of the state’s 28 prisons will receive $15,000 for books, magazines and other supplies — the first time they’ve received public funding of any kind in six years.

Illinois lawmakers plan to ask state prison officials why more than 200 books were removed from a college in prison program’s library at the Danville...