COVID-19 And Prisons: America's Penal System A 'Petri Dish' For Pandemic

Concerns from U.S. health officials about overcrowding and unsanitary conditions at prisons across the country have begun to materialize in a rapidly rising number of coronavirus cases. Around 1,300 confirmed cases had been reported as of Friday, with at least 32 deaths from the virus. Experts warn the numbers likely represent an undercounted.

The Cook County Jail in Chicago has become the proverbial poster child for the impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had. The Sheriff’s Office said Wednesday at least 276 inmates and 172 staff members tested positive for coronavirus. Around 20 were subsequently hospitalized for treatment and two inmates have died, the most recent on Thursday.

Other facilities that have seen coronavirus deaths include:

• FCI Elkton in Lisbon Ohio
• Rikers in New York City
• FCI Oakdale in Louisiana
• Stateville Correctional Center in Crest Hills, Illinois

Before the pandemic started, the jail housed some 5,500 detainees, either awaiting trial or serving time for misdemeanor convictions. However, fears over an outbreak at the jail led to the introduction of an expedited bond review in March. It reduced the population to around 4,500, but it wasn’t enough to prevent the outbreak.

The first reported cases came on March 23, when two inmates tested positive for coronavirus. Both were immediately placed in isolation, but the virus continued to spread across the jail’s population over the next two weeks.

The New York Times said it has since become home to the single highest concentration of COVID-19 cases in the U.S. and warned the actual number of cases is likely much higher due to a shortage of testing kits.

“Jails in this country are petri dishes,” Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle told CNN. “It's very difficult in a jail to maintain social distancing.”

Lawyers for two detainees reportedly with pre-existing medical conditions filed a federal lawsuit on April 3 in Chicago asking for better conditions and the release or transfer of all “medically vulnerable inmates.” But Judge Matthew Kennelly denied the request Thursday, saying the detainees hadn’t pursued all open legal avenues. He did, however, order Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart to work on improving sanitary conditions that are suspected to have helped lead to the outbreak and begin wider testing of detainees.

More lawsuits have been filed across the country by other inmates, their relatives, and advocacy groups like the American Civil Liberties Union for improved treatment. These includes a class-action lawsuit in Oregon against the state’s Department of Corrections for ignoring a public health warning and a request for the immediate release of high-risk prisoners from Oakdale federal prison in Louisiana.

Coronavirus concerns have also led to a string of incidents at penitentiaries across the U.S. as inmates demand better treatment and conditions to help prevent possible outbreaks.

The most notable incident to occur was at the Monroe Correctional Facility in Washington State on Wednesday. Around 100 inmates began demonstrating in the prison’s recreational yard demanding better living conditions after six inmates tested positive for coronavirus. The men reportedly threatened to start fires and take hostages if they were ignored.

“All measures to bring individuals into compliance were ignored including verbal directives, pepperspray and sting balls, which release light, noise, and rubber pellets,” the Department of Corrections Washington State said in a statement. A spokesperson for the department told TIME Thursday the situation has since come “under control” and no one was harmed during the protest though officers were still “assessing damage.”

Another incident was at the Lansing Correctional Facility in Kansas on Thursday when inmates reportedly took over a cell block. One inmate said it started because of an argument between staff and prisoners over the measures taken to try and prevent the spread of COVID-19. Kansas Department of Corrections spokesman Randall Bowman said around 50 inmates had left their cells and were destroying prison property. However, no one was hurt and all staff had been evacuated safely before the disturbance ended around 1 a.m. on Friday.