Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Coronavirus (COVID-19) has profoundly impacted correctional facilities, requiring significant adaptations to protect the health of inmates, staff, and visitors. This section offers articles that examine the response to the COVID-19 pandemic within correctional systems, including containment strategies, vaccination efforts, and the long-term implications for prison health care. Understanding the effects of COVID-19 on correctional operations is essential for professionals navigating this ongoing public health challenge. For related information, explore resources on Correctional Healthcare.
“We are doing everything we can to proactively prevent inmate and employee exposure to the virus,” Sheriff Anthony Dennis said
As of last month, 141 of the jail’s 470 total positions were unfilled
53 prisoners received nearly $200,000 in unemployment benefits because they had been laid off from work release programs as the state shut down in 2020
Nearly a month later, Michael Powers is recovering and back at work advocating for safety measures
Some prosecutors are outraged about releases in their jurisdictions and have criticized the board for what they say is a lack of transparency and communication
So far, only inmates showing symptoms of the novel coronavirus have been tested, leaving employees to seek testing on their own
The inmates were removed from the prison and are in isolation; others who had close contact with the three have also been quarantined
Robert Marrero, a former New York corrections officer, 9/11 responder and cancer survivor, spent more than a month in the hospital battling COVID-19
The commission is using its voter-provided direct authority to use subpoenas to investigate conduct within the department
“This mistaken release or any release of an inmate with a pending COVID-19 test is unacceptable,” Gov. Andy Beshear’s spokeswoman said
As COVID-19 cripples the economy, big businesses that have become synonymous with the world’s largest prison system are still making money
Many arrestees think that if they say they have COVID-19, they will not go to jail, but that’s not how the system works
While many facilities use outside cleaning businesses, here’s what to do if those services are not available
“If you look at how it’s tracked across the globe, you’ll see that this thing runs through a correctional facility like a brush fire,” a CO union rep said
The detainee had been held at the Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego and hospitalized since late April
The U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals said a judge overstepped when she ruled Metro West Detention Center inmates get the supplies and be tested for COVID-19
Of the 27 staff members who tested positive, 20 are corrections officers, five are managers and two are crisis counselors
If we are going to survive COVID-19 and our jobs as correctional officers, we need to take a look at our health and make some changes
Hypervigilance may help save lives when an actual threat materializes, but it wears us down if it becomes a chronic state of being
COs said a lack of preparation, like temperature checks, testing and proper PPE, left them unnecessarily exposed
Oakland County Jail inmate Jamaal Cameron said he could reach from his jail cell out, around and into an adjacent cell where inmates with COVID-19 were held
“The respondents are not being deliberately indifferent to the health and safety of the inmates ... the court is denying the relief that is sought,” a chief justice said
The addition of the asymptomatic positives more than doubles the number of inmates at the Lansing Correctional Facility testing positive for COVID-19
The Maine Department of Corrections has also been criticized for its lack of transparency amid the pandemic
The federal Bureau of Prisons recently chose FCI Gilmer and FCI Hazelton as quarantine sites for out-of-state inmates
“They just pretended nothing would happen and hoped it would go away,” former CO David Carter said
Testing for all COs and inmates will begin in a week, but the governor’s office denied officers’ request for hazard pay
Detainees barricaded themselves inside the facility, ripped washing machines and pipes off the wall, broke windows and “trashed the entire unit”
Alexander Reginald Pettiway, 55, worked with the Durham County Sheriff’s Office for 23 years
Timothy De La Fuente, a Bexar County Sheriff’s Office veteran, worked in parts of the jail deemed as “hotspots”
Defense attorneys have asked sheriffs in four counties to quarantine staff attending a planned political rally so they don’t inadvertently infect inmates
Decon7 Systems provides a disinfectant that effectively neutralizes the novel coronavirus and a variety of other biological threats
This is a video by officers from around the country, telling a story very few hear
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