By PAUL HAMMEL
Nebraska Examiner
LINCOLN — Rob Jeffreys, who resigned from leading the Illinois Department of Corrections three days ago, was introduced Monday as the new chief of the Nebraska prison system, the Examiner has learned.
Jeffrey, who had held the top job in Illinois since June 2019, will be named by his new boss, Gov. Jim Pillen, during an afternoon news conference.
Jeffreys will succeed Diane Sabatka-Rine, who had served as interim director of the Nebraska of Corrections since October, when Scott Frakes retired.
Frakes left in October
Frakes had led the Nebraska department since 2015, shortly after then-Gov. Pete Ricketts was elected to his first term, and was paid $255,000 a year — one of the highest salaries for a corrections director in the country.
In Illinois, Jeffreys oversaw a department that housed approximately 29,000 inmates in 27 facilities and a $1.6 billion budget. That is considerably larger than the Nebraska’s system, which has about 5,500 inmates at nine prisons.
Jeffreys, whose last posted salary was $182,300 a year, spent 24 years with the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction before taking the Illinois job. In Ohio, he served in management for 21 years. His last post there was as chief of staff at Ohio corrections.
Jeffreys was chosen by Pillen after a national search via a hired firm.
Overcrowding, staff shortages
Nebraska’s prison system has had a longtime problem with overcrowding and was at 150% of capacity last year. Staffing shortages have also plagued the department, though significant salary increases adopted last year have eased that problem.
The Nebraska Legislature is currently debating whether to provide the final funding to build a new, 1,500-bed prison somewhere in eastern Nebraska. Some lawmakers believe that a second new prison will also be needed.
The Appropriations Committee is scheduled to decide later this week whether to include the final funds for the 1,500-bed facility, estimated to cost $270 million.