MILPITAS – The number of COVID-19 infected inmates in Santa Clara County increased by 36 in one day, nearly doubling the number of active cases and a spike charted since New Year’s Eve, according to figures from Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office.
As of Tuesday, an online dashboard maintained by the sheriff’s office showed 74 active arrest cases in the district jails and more than 60 new cases as of Dec. 31. Most of the increase has taken place at the Elmwood Men’s Prison in Milpitas, in dorm-style units where both inmates and prison staff have said that physical distance is impractical and often impossible.
Sheriff’s Sgt. Michael Low confirmed that most of the new infections were reported in the M8 wing in Elmwood, which has four 68-bed modules. Men held in those wings said two of the M8 dormitories had been completely evacuated, with inmates there being moved to quarantine units elsewhere on the property, including at least some of the women’s prison.
Low said the sheriff’s office is conducting contact tracing to determine the origin of the outbreak, but so far has not identified the source or sources.
“We are committed to reducing the spread of this contagious virus and protecting the health and safety of everyone within our facilities and the community,” Low wrote in an email.
But several inmates and their relatives have reached out to this news organization in recent days to reiterate the chronic grievances they have raised about prison conditions during the pandemic, including but not limited to modest clothing fees, a lack of cleaning supplies and an inconsistent compliance with COVID. -19 security protocols.
A man detained in an M8 unit said they still see prison deputies wearing no masks, and it is normal to see food carts being driven between housing units without being disinfected. He added that a lack of supplies provided has prompted inmates to use their own towels or even their clothes to clean their areas.
“We see many violations of cleaning protocols,” said the man, who for fear of retaliation asked not to be named. “We definitely feel unsafe.”
Other inmates and their relatives continue to refute the concerns of public defenders and other advocates about the congregation of prisoners from quarantined and unquarantined units in transit to and from court. A woman who says her husband is being quarantined in Elmwood claims that given that inmates are restricted and where they can go, staff and other prison visitors are being overlooked as vectors of the virus in custody. to bring.
The woman, who also asked not to be named in retaliation for her husband, alluded to a report from this news organization of a holiday with representatives of the prosecution violating the rallying restrictions and the protocols for renunciation and masks, which coincided with a prison deputy. infections and an outbreak in the main prison 7B wing involving about 30 inmates.
“I strongly believe that guards who gathered for the holidays contributed to this major outbreak within the facility,” she said.
According to their data published online, the sheriff’s office has recorded more than 360 custody-related COVID-19 infections to date. As coronavirus cases continue to increase in the Bay Area and statewide, the county’s prisons have been anything but immune, with past spikes that included nearly 100 inmates over a two-week period in July and August at the Elmwood facility and a rise in the Main Jail’s 5B wing in July.