April 22, 2020
News Roundup
In recent weeks, prisons around the United States have emerged as hotspots for the spread of the coronavirus. Overcrowded conditions and poor sanitation within the facilities have been significant factors in this spread, leading to protests across the country as inmates appeal to their state governments for assistance. As legal firms and state supreme courts begin to intervene, new policy options are being explored and implemented, including the release of non-dangerous and/or at-risk inmates, as well as shifts in the structural operations of the prisons themselves. However, many activists and legal professionals argue that these measures are still inadequate.
Chicago prison under scrutiny over health concerns
Cook County Jail in Chicago – one of the largest prisons in the country – has fallen under scrutiny for its sanitation measures and treatment of inmates during the COVID-19 crisis. The jail, which has around 4,000 inmates, has reported infection rates of 50 per 1,000 people; in the country overall, the infection rate is roughly 1.56 per 1,000. Thus far, 276 inmates and 150 staff members have tested positive for the virus, and one inmate has died. Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart, the prison’s overseer, has asserted that the high statistics are due to the facility’s practice of testing anybody displaying COVID-19 symptoms. However, federal courts have mandated that further measures must be taken to stop the spread.
On April 3, a lawsuit was filed against the jail on behalf of two inmates. The inmates argued that the prison (represented by Sheriff Dart as the defendant) failed to protect their 14th Amendment rights by not providing safe living conditions during the pandemic. U.S. District Judge Matthew Kennelly responded with a 37-page order requiring the jail to improve its sanitation. Provisions of this order include providing access to soap and sanitizer, continue testing inmates as soon as symptoms are displayed, and provide masks to all quarantined prisoners.
Kennelly’s order also addressed spatial concerns and their impact on infection rates. He ordered that the jail cease using small holding pens for new arrivals, and that strict cell-cleaning measures be practiced. In a similar vein, another judge implemented bail reduction hearings as a means of decreasing the prisoner population by releasing non-threatening detainees. The latter action decreased the prisoner population by almost 1,000 inmates.
On April 13, officials reported that an inmate at the jail had died from COVID-19 complications, marking the third such fatality within a week. At the time of that report, the number of positive tests had increased to 306 inmates and 218 employees, including 181 correctional officers.
Sources: Tarm, Michael and Babwin, Don. Judge orders Chicago jail to do more to halt spread of virus. Associated Press.; 2020, April 13. 3rd Cook County inmate dies after positive test for virus. Associated Press.
Washington State begins releasing prisoners after State Supreme Court order
After petitioning from inmates at one of the states’ largest jails, the Washington State Supreme Court ordered Governor Jay Inslee to enact measures to protect the incarcerated population. The Monroe Correctional Facility, which can house 2,500 people, has reported six positive cases of COVID-19 thus far, with 54 other potential cases awaiting diagnosis. The outbreak began in early April, and lawyers representing several inmates made an emergency appeal after a demonstration at the jail turned violent. One of their primary lobbying points has been the release of non-dangerous inmates, particularly those who are over 60, and thus in the high-risk range.
Gov. Inslee held a press conference on April 9 in which he addressed the petition, and offered some plans of action that included continued symptom screening and potentially releasing non-violent offenders who are within 60 days of their release date. After hearing their cases, the state Supreme Court reached out to Gov. Inslee on Friday with instructions to take concrete steps to protect inmates. The court ruled that Inslee and corrections Secretary Stephen Sinclair had to submit a plan by noon on Monday. In response, Inslee announced Monday afternoon that the state will release roughly 1,000 prisoners – all nonviolent offenders – as a means of creating more space in the facilities and ensuring the health of inmates. Monroe Correctional Complex still has the most confirmed cases of all of Washington’s correctional facilities; seven of the eight inmate cases, and five of the 14 correctional workers’ cases, have come from the prison. Activists and legal experts have urged Inslee to take further measures to ensure the health of the roughly 17,000 inmates that will, under this ruling, remain incarcerated.
Governors around the country have considered and/or implemented similar rules as prisons frequently become breakout hotspots. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine’s program may release about 200 prisoners, and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear plans to release roughly 900. Particularly intense scrutiny has been focused on the state of Illinois, which, like Washington, has experienced massive outbreaks in its larger facilities, leading to legal advocacy.
This week, Washington State began the process of commuting sentences. Inslee and Sinclair stated that they will release 650 to 950 nonviolent offenders who were near the end of their terms. As of Tuesday, 293 prisoners’ sentences have been commuted, 41 have been furloughed on work-release, and an additional 600 are being considered for rapid-reentry programs. Additional numbers are expected to be reported by Wednesday.
Sources: Bellisle, Martha. 2020, April 10. Supreme Court: Inslee, WA must protect inmates from virus. Associated Press.; Bellisle, Martha. 2020, April 13. Washington to release almost 1,000 inmates amid outbreak. Associated Press.; Bellisle, Martha. 2020, April 21. More than 300 inmates released due to COVID-19 concerns. Associated Press.
Ohio, Texas, Maryland under scrutiny for prison virus outbreaks
Day by day, new states face outbreaks at their correctional facilities, prompting officials to take drastic actions much like those in Illinois and Washington. Ohio has become a recent subject of scrutiny, particularly the Marion Correctional Institution in the north-central part of the state. The facility has 2,500 inmates and 350 employees; as of Monday, a staggering 154 workers and 2,011 inmates have tested positive for the coronavirus. Inmates have reported slow testing results, as well as a lack of soap and a shortage of masks. Both Gov. Mike DeWine and the Ohio prisons agency have reported that they are working on responses to the issue. Numbers at other prisons in the state have been increasing as well. Ohio has an estimated 79,000 individuals currently incarcerated, according to a report by the Prison Policy Initiative. Thus far, 3,762 inmates have tested positive for the coronavirus – a staggering 20% of the overall prison population. There have been nine fatalities, seven of which came from the Pickaway Correctional Institution near Columbus.
Elsewhere in the country, states have increasingly grappled with outbreaks – many stemming from unhygienic living conditions – and begun considering the next courses of action. Texas, which has the largest prison system of any state, locked down 42,000 prisoners – 29% of the incarcerated population – this week in an attempt to halt the spread of the disease. 470 inmates and over 200 staffers at more than two dozen prisons have tested positive. Meanwhile, a jail in Maryland has been the latest target of a lawsuit on behalf of its inmates. According to the civil rights group that filed the suit, Prince George’s County Jail, which houses roughly 600 prisoners, has allegedly placed inmates that have tested positive for COVID-19 in unclean cells and offered little or no treatment. On April 19, Gov. Lawrence J. Hogan, Jr. signed an executive order “[A]llowing for the accelerated release of people within 4 months of completing their sentence, prioritizing release for older people, and encouraging consideration of release to home detention.” (Prison Policy Initiative).
Sources: Welsh-Huggins, Andrew. April 21, 2020. Virus outbreak in Ohio prisons highlights risk at US
lockups. Associated Press.; 2020, April 22. Responses to the COVID-19 pandemic – releasing people from jails and prisons. Prison Policy Initiative.