At one facility, prisoners were making their own makeshift masks, which was considered “destruction of property” and subject to discipline.
found that COVID-19 could kill approximately 100,000 more people if jail populations are not dramatically and immediately reduced. Prior to the pandemic, Los Angeles County had the largest jail system in the country, housing nearly 17,000 inmates. That number has shrunk to just under 12,000 in roughly the past month, but conditions in the system are still extremely dangerous.
The plaintiffs note that the CDC has issued guidance for avoiding contagion in prisons and that Los Angeles County has already taken steps to reduce its prisoner population. Other state-system measures to ameliorate the spread mean that meals are now served in cells and recreation time in public spaces has been decreased, as has visitation. Some efforts to improve sanitation and educate prisoners have been made.
Some inmates share a handful of communal phones, exercise equipment, and communal tables. Inmates of advanced age are not separated. Personal hygiene products are limited to one bar of soap that can only be replaced through the jail’s commissary system and one clean towel a week. Not every inmate has access to the commissary, some have no funds, and the prices are inflated. There is no access to hand sanitizer or gloves. Inmates with symptoms are not separated from the population.
In another facility, North County Correctional Facility, “incarcerated people are forced to share four toilets, two urinals, and two showers” in each 66-person cell. Inmates there have still not been provided face masks or face coverings. The complaint also alleges that transportation of prisoners also renders them unsafe and that those who test positive for the virus receive inadequate treatment.
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