The Rev. Laurie Tockey, a United Church of Christ minister and a chaplain at the Lincoln Correctional Center in Lincoln, Ill., will discuss religious liberty in prisons and why it matters at a breakfast forum sponsored by DePaul University's Center for Church/State Studies. The forum, which is part of an ongoing discussion of issues that explore the relationship between religion and the law, will be held at 8 a.m. Feb 8 at the Union League Club of Chicago, 65 W. Jackson Blvd., fifth floor.

     Since 1995, Tockey has been the senior chaplain at the Lincoln Correctional Center, a minimum-security facility that houses 1,100 male inmates. Tockey, who has 22 years of The Rev. Laurie Tockey, a United Church of Christ minister and a chaplain at the Lincoln Correctional Center in Lincoln, Ill., will discuss religious liberty in prisons and why it matters at a breakfast forum sponsored by DePaul University's Center for Church/State Studies. The forum, which is part of an ongoing discussion of issues that explore the relationship between religion and the law, will be held at 8 a.m. Feb 8 at the Union League Club of Chicago, 65 W. Jackson Blvd., fifth floor.

     Since 1995, Tockey has been the senior chaplain at the Lincoln Correctional Center, a minimum-security facility that houses 1,100 male inmates. Tockey, who has 22 years of experience ministering in the prison setting, began his career in prison ministry as a research sociologist for the state of Washington in 1976. He has provided religious leadership in prison and jail facilities in California, Washington and Illinois.

     Tockey also is the president of the Illinois State Association of Chaplains, which brings together Catholic, Protestant, Muslim and Jewish professionals who work as chaplains in prisons, mental health facilities and developmental centers operated by the state of Illinois. As president, Tockey is working to promote quality religious programming and high professional standards of pastoral care for incarcerated individuals./p>

     A passionate advocate for the religious rights of prisoners, Tockey was active in recent efforts to include protections for prison inmates in the Illinois Religious Freedom Restoration Act.

     Tockey, who coordinated the United Church of Christ Prison Ministry Network, earned his bachelor's degree in 1977 from Evergreen State College in Olympia, Wash. He received a master's of divinity in 1980 from the Chicago Theological Seminary and was ordained a minister in the United Church of Christ in 1981.

     DePaul's Center for Church/State Studies provides a forum for the discussion and study of critical issues involving religion, government and the law in the belief that both church and state benefit from a dispassionate, scholarly analysis of church/state legal issues. The center is non-denominational and does not assume positions on constitutional issues or become involved in litigation.

     The breakfast is free and open to the public. For reservations call Jennifer Kepling 312/362-8818.

Note to Editors: Media wishing to cover this event or arrange an interview with Tockey should contact Valerie Phillips, DePaul University Media Relations, at 312/362-5039.