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Worst Fear of Prisoner Advocates Comes True: First Inmate Dies of Coronavirus in DC Jail

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Washington, D.C. recorded its first coronavirus-related death among incarcerated individuals at the D.C. Central Detention Facility earlier this week, after rights groups called for release of eligible inmates and stricter precautions against a possible outbreak in jails.

The first victim of COVID-19 in a D.C. jail was a 51-year-old man named Deon Crowell, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced Monday morning. Crowell was diagnosed with the disease on Tuesday last week and immediately placed in isolation. He was hospitalized later that day. He had been staying at the facility since June 2018, according to the D.C. Department of Corrections (DOC).

“We send them our deep condolences,” Bowser said, referring to Crowell’s grieving family.

The D.C. Central Detention Facility currently has over 40 confirmed cases of coronavirus infections among inmates. Some of them have filed a class-action lawsuit requesting early release and better sanitation at the facility.

A judge ordered last weekend independent inspectors to examine safety and sanitation procedures at the jail. The inspectors will also check if every inmate is provided with a bar of soap per week.

In the meantime, Mayor Bowser granted a total of 36 inmates with misdemeanor convictions additional good time credits, making them eligible for early release.

Last week, D.C. Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton wrote a letter to the Director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), Michael Carvajal, asking BOP to investigate conditions at Hope Village, the men’s halfway house in the District, where two inmates reportedly died from the coronavirus.

The total number of positive cases in the District has surpassed 2,000, with over 70 deaths resulting from the virus, at the time of our reporting.

 

Norton Calls for Release of All Eligible Inmates at Hope Village due to Pandemic

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