Tracking COVID-19’s striking prison spread

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From: The Marshall Project <in...@themarshallproject.org>
Sent: Saturday, April 25, 2020 6:00 AM
Subject: Tracking COVID-19’s striking prison spread

 

 

Opening Statement April 25, 2020

 

Edited by Andrew Cohen

 

 

Pick of the News When prisons and jails test widely, they discover large outbreaks. There are wildly disparate reported COVID-19 infection rates among prisoners and guards across the country because testing criteria differ from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and relatively few states report mass testing even when it’s conducted. But officials in some states aren’t testing guards—a blind spot, experts say—or simply not testing asymptomatic people at all. One reason for the disparity is ambiguity in the CDC’s guidance. Cary Aspinwall and Joseph Neff have our story. The Marshall Project Tracking the spread of the coronavirus in prisons where the curve, definitely, is not flattening. There are at least 9,437 reported COVID-19 cases among prisoners across the nation, according to data a team of Marshall Project reporters collected from the Federal Bureau of Prisons and corrections officials in all 50 states. The number of cases is more than doubling each week and does not count the men and women behind bars who have the virus but who have not been tested. Still, the rate far outpaces the growth in infections outside prisons. We also don’t know how many incarcerated people were tested for COVID-19 before they were released in an attempt to limit the spread of the virus. Katie Park, Tom Meagher and Weihua Li analyzed the data. The Marshall Project Another epic BOP failure. The Bureau of Prisons has failed over the past three weeks to effectively carry out a Justice Department mandate to “immediately maximize” the release of federal prisoners who may be vulnerable to COVID-19. The BOP has released only about 1,000 prisoners to “home confinement” since ordered to expedite releases. That’s far less than one percent of the federal prison population and a small fraction of the 32,000 men and women who have less than one year to serve and who are thus potentially eligible for release under the CARES Act and U.S. Attorney General William Barr’s release memo supporting it. TMP’s Joseph Neff and Keri Blakinger have our story. The Marshall Project How Fishkill is keeping calm and carrying on. Corey Devon Arthur, imprisoned since 1997, was appointed to lead the Inmate Liaison Committee at the Fishkill Correctional Facility in New York in February, just before the coronavirus arrived. He now spends his days mostly bearing bad news to his fellow prisoners as corrections officials scramble to limit the spread of COVID-19 inside the sprawling facility. One dramatic change has been a positive one, however. Officers are meeting daily with members of Arthur’s committee to try to dispel rumors and keep the atmosphere inside the prison as calm as possible during a pandemic. Here is the latest in our “Life Inside” series. The Marshall Project COVID-19 in prisons and jails. The first reported COVID-19 death of a federal prisoner in Michigan is a 43-year-old man who served less than half his 14-month sentence. Bureau of Prisons At least 300 prisoners and staff in Florida prisons have tested positive for COVID-19. More than 4,000 prisoners are now in quarantine. Florida Department of Corrections Washington state’s Supreme Court rejects a lawsuit seeking to force the governor to release more prisoners to protect them from potential COVID-19 exposure. Seattle Times Conditions go from bad to worse in federal confinement in Fort Dix, New Jersey. The Appeal A Texas judge is sued by a conservative political activist for issuing an order requiring Harris County residents to wear masks to help stop the spread of the coronavirus. Texas Tribune A look at the spread of COVID-19 inside juvenile detention facilities. The Sentencing Project N/S/E/W A Kentucky lawyer was arrested this week for allegedly threatening the state’s governor over shelter orders. NBC News Related: Members of the discredited anti-vaccine movement have joined with protesters of shelter orders to form a broader anti-government message. Los Angeles Times Brandon Baxter complained about the lack of COVID-19 protections at the Ohio halfway house where he was sent. So federal marshals sent him back to prison just as the coronavirus began its sweep through the state. Reason Police in New York City have a quartermaster, and an enormous warehouse of supplies, and now the focus, 24-hours a day, is on supplying NYPD officers and employees with masks and wipes and other protective gear. Los Angeles Times Immigration detainees in Louisiana this week asked to be deported as COVID-19 took hold in their Louisiana prison. They were doused in pepper spray by guards. Mother Jones Three unions representing jail workers in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, join the chorus asking local judges to release more prisoners as the coronavirus spreads. Philadelphia Inquirer More: Jail union officials in New York sue over “triple-shift” requirements. Law360.com Commentary Public health, public safety. The next avoidable outbreak behind bars may come from the federal jail in Chicago. Chicago Tribune Related: Some victims and survivors of crime are furious that prisoners (even pretrial detainees) are being released from custody to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. The New York Times “[I]f they are time-limited and have a rational basis in science...” Some of the fiercest civil libertarians say that shelter orders are lawful and necessary at this stage of the pandemic. The Atlantic A nice way to put it. The Supreme Court’s 5-4 immigrant removal ruling this week was yet another case in which the justices’ “foundational views” guided their “interpretative choices.” Scotusblog Related: The latest immigration order is a restriction in search of a rationale. Lawfare Clemency, before it’s too late. “If we believe in faith-based values of compassion, redemption, and mercy, then we’ll also extend them to” at-risk prisoners in a pandemic. Newsday Related: “No one deserves to die of Covid-19 in prison or jail.” The New York Times Etc. Release of the Day: Rufus Rochell, imprisoned for 32 years for a non-violent drug crime, was released from prison Friday in Florida. He is 68 years old, became involved in prison ministry during his decades of confinement and will serve the rest of his sentence at his sister’s house. The Wall Street Journal Obituary of the Day: The first Alabama prisoner to die of COVID-19, Dave Thomas, was 66, terminally ill and serving a life sentence for a 1976 murder. Southern Poverty Law Center Audio of the Day: Gives us the story of Mitch Pomerance, a Rikers Island prisoner, as he tries to get out of the New York jail in the middle of a pandemic. The New York Times Dire Warning of the Day: Homeland Security officials say domestic terrorists and violent extremists pose a COVID-19 threat to government facilities and elected officials. Politico Stopgap Measure of the Day: Officials in Baltimore now are sending homeless people to hotels after a COVID-19 outbreak at a shelter there. Baltimore Sun

 

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