From Sequestering Prisoners To Releasing Others Early, State And Federal Jails Struggle With Virus Response

The Hill: States Move To Protect Prisoners From Coronavirus Outbreaks
State and local corrections departments are taking steps ranging from sequestering inmates to releasing low-level offenders in efforts to prevent the deadly coronavirus from spreading through prisons and jails. Prisoners are among the most vulnerable groups at risk of both a widespread outbreak and of suffering severe symptoms, experts said. Incarcerated populations tend to be older, many inmates have underlying health conditions and there is little social distancing to be achieved in confined spaces. (Wilson, 4/9)

The New York Times: Chicago’s Jail Is Top U.S. Hot Spot As Virus Spreads Behind Bars
It started small. On March 23, two inmates in the sprawling Cook County jail, one of the nation’s largest, were placed in isolation cells after testing positive for the coronavirus. In a little over two weeks, the virus exploded behind bars, infecting more than 350 people. The jail in Chicago is now the nation’s largest-known source of coronavirus infections, according to data compiled by The New York Times, with more confirmed cases than the U.S.S. Theodore Roosevelt, a nursing home in Kirkland, Wash., or the cluster centered on New Rochelle, N.Y. (Williams and Ivory, 4/8)

NPR: Inmates In Washington State Protest After Fellow Prisoners Test Positive For COVID-19
Dozens of inmates at the Monroe Correctional Complex in Washington state have staged a brief protest after several fellow prisoners tested positive for the novel coronavirus in recent days. In a statement issued late Wednesday, the Department of Corrections Washington State said that around 6 p.m. local time more than 100 men at the prison's minimum-security unit (MSU) "began engaging in a demonstration in the recreation yard." (Neuman, 4/9)

CBS News: Crisis At Oakdale: Coronavirus Cripples Federal Prison In Louisiana
A federal prison in Louisiana has come into focus after five inmates housed at the facility died after contracting the coronavirus. Attorney General William Barr has urged the Bureau of Prisons to allow vulnerable inmates who qualify at FCI Oakdale I and other federal prisons to serve the rest of their sentences from home. Oakdale, a low-security facility located about 200 miles west of New Orleans, typically houses 971 male inmates. The prison has reported 42 confirmed cases of COVID-19 among staff and inmates. (Hymes, 4/8)

NBC News: Jails Are Releasing Inmates Because Of Coronavirus. New York Just Took A Step To Lock More People Up.
Last week, as law enforcement officials around the country were cutting jail populations to blunt the spread of the coronavirus, New York lawmakers did something that could lead to more people getting locked up. The state Legislature changed course on a 2019 law that restricted the use of cash bail, tucking new caveats into a last-minute budget bill signed Friday by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. (Schuppe, 4/8)

CNN: Coronavirus Cases In California Prisons Multiplied In Days And Inmates Fear Further Spread 
The number of inmates infected with coronavirus in the California prison system grew by more than seven times in a little more than a week, while staff cases nearly tripled, leaving some behind bars fearful that cases will explode even as officials have begun taking steps to slow the spread. Twenty-nine inmates and more than 60 staff members have now tested positive for the virus, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said Wednesday. (Maxouris, 4/9)

Houston Chronicle: Reports: Children Are In 23½ Hour-A-Day Lockup At Harris County Juvenile Facility Amid COVID-19
Harris County’s juvenile detention center has been following guidance from the CDC and local health authorities in dealing with COVID-19, a spokesperson said Wednesday after a lawsuit alleging near solitary confinement was filed. Legal action filed this week by the public defender’s office alleged that teenagers have been confined to their rooms 23½ hours per day at Harris County’s juvenile detention center. The facility says that youth are allowed out for 1½ hours a day and that it plans to increase that time. (Banks, 4/8)