A corrections officer checks a cell at San Quentin State Prison in San Quentin, California, U.S., on ... [+]
Topline: The first cases of the coronavirus in the federal prison system have been confirmed by CNN, as two staffers have tested positive in the past 24 hours, indicative of a severe threat of outbreak in the prison system as a whole.
- The positions of the two staffers were not identified, but one employee works at a medium security prison in Berlin, New Hampshire, while the other works at an administrative facility in Grand Prairie, Texas.
- So far, no inmates in the federal prison system have tested positive; however, there have been cases at the state and county level, with a worker at a state correction facility in New York testing positive, as well as the maintenance director of a county prison in Pennsylvania, the latter forcing inmates and staff into quarantine.
- In the UK Wednesday, the first inmate case was confirmed at Manchester-based Strangeways, which has 1,238 prisoners, according to The Guardian.
- With the easily spreadable coronavirus and the lack of widespread testing, prisons are considered ticking time bombs, with visitations restricted and the ACLU today releasing a statement that it's sent letters to federal, state and local officials outlining additional recommendations to prevent a health crisis in its populations, including commutations for vulnerable people with sentences ending in two years or less, the halting of arrests for minor offenses and expediting and expanding release opportunities for inmates by parole boards.
- In Los Angeles County, such measures have already been adopted, with reductions in prison population by 600 to 17,076, and lower arrests from 300 to 60 this past weekend.
- There are 7,324 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the U.S., resulting in 108 reported deaths, according to the Washington Post.
Key Background: There are 175,483 inmates in the federal prison system. President Trump earlier this week recommended people avoid groups of over 10. Additionally, he invoked the Defense Production Act as the U.S. is lacking in necessary medical supplies. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar testified to Congress in February that as many as 300 million protective surgical masks would be needed, with national stockpiles at 30 million.
Further Reading: Infections And Incarceration: Why Jails And Prisons Need To Prepare For COVID-19 Now
