The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has depopulated the jail system by 25% after a civil liberties group requested it decrease the number of inmates as a way to stop the spread of COVID-19.
"It's enormous considering that we have the nation's largest jail system and we've done this deliberately since the end of February," said Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva in a press conference streamed on Facebook Live. "We've done it gradually and responsibly by carefully balancing public safety versus the interest of having a defensible space within the jail system where we can isolate, quarantine and segregate populations to ensure that there is no widespread contamination of the virus."
The ACLU of Southern California raised the public health issue, according to media reports, because people consistently circulate in and out of jail and inmates live in close quarters, making them susceptible to COVID-19 infection.
Currently, 676 inmates are under quarantine, 28 are medically isolated and 11 have tested positive for coronavirus.
"Two of them have since recovered, tested negative and are back in the general population," Villanueva said.
That's compared to within the custody department where 429 employees are under quarantine, 33 have tested positive and 230 are returning to work.
"Unfortunately, we have one custody assistant for men's central jail who's currently on life support on a ventilator and we're just praying and rooting for him that he can pull through," said Villanueva.
After the Los Angeles County Correctional Health Services recommended restrictions to help prevent the spread of COVID-19, the Sheriff's Department announced on March 12 a suspension in visits to jail inmates except for attorneys and professionals representing them. "These limitations are still in place for the time being," said Deputy Ed Luna, public information officer with the department." Cleaning crews have increased in size and frequency."
Inmates have access to free soap in response to the COVID-19 outbreak as suggested by the ACLU, Luna told the Southern California Record.
"Inmates are being provided with a continual flow of hygiene and cleaning supplies," Deputy Luna said.