By Crescenzo Vellucci
Vanguard Sacramento Bureau Chief
SAN FRANCISCO – The VANGUARD has learned that male inmates at Alameda County’s Santa Rita Jail are asking for an emergency temporary restraining order from the U.S. District Court here to “protect” them from the ravages of COVID-19, which has been “well-established” at the facility since March.
According to a filing expected to be heard this week, the jail’s response to someone suspected of having COVID-19 is to throw them “in the hole,” and only some of the “lucky few get a few cough drops.”
The pleading, filed by civil rights attorney Yolanda Huang, asks the court to intervene, and “concretely require the defendant Sheriff, his underlings, and relevant personnel from SRJ’s contracted, for-profit medical care provider, defendant Wellpath…to protect the prisoners at SRJ from defendants’ continuing failure to provide reasonable COVID-19 prevention, care, and treatment.”
Declarations of prisoners, public health experts, and physicians were filed with the complaint, which alleges prisoners at SRJ “are left with little defense against COVID-19. Under the total control of the defendant SHERIFF, there is little testing, tragically poor implementation of distancing, ineffective isolation of quarantined inmates, improper sanitation, a severe lack of soap, sanitizer, and personal protective equipment.”
It adds that “Under ordinary circumstances, there is effectively no clean-up or disinfecting, and the place is filthy. Grievously, during the COVID-19 pandemic, poor practices and disregard for sanitation 
continues, with tragic implications for prisoners, as well as anyone who enters SRJ or comes into contact with anyone who has entered SRJ.”
The pleading informs the court that “most SRJ staff members do not wear masks or other PPE such as gloves at work and staff move freely between quarantined and nonquarantined housing units. Inmates report various body fluids on nearly every surface with rare and ineffective cleanings by SRJ and completely inadequate provision of cleaning supplies which would allow inmates to take steps to clean and protect themselves…these practices serve to spread COVID-19 within the SRJ and to those in contact with SRJ staff and inmates.”
Inmates charge in their moving papers that “Defendants’ response when a prisoner becomes ill with COVID-19 is a transfer to solitary confinement (the ‘Hole’), where he is locked without treatment and denied basic care…some days later, the prisoner–declared to be ‘recovered,’ despite being symptomatic–is transferred back to the general jail population.”
Infected prisoners assert that while in the “hole,” they complain of “significant symptoms such as breathing difficulty and chest pain, (but) are treated punitively,” and say they are denied medicine and information about their illness…”kept in freezing cold cells without sufficient blankets (even when requested), and kept indoors away from natural light and open air for extended periods. A lucky few receive a couple of cough drops.”
The complaint claims that the “public also has interests in (1) avoiding accelerating the spread of the corona virus both in the Jail and to others in contact with inmates or staff at the Jail, (2) preventing overburdening hospitals, and (3) preventing future societal burden caused by the loss of inmate health or life, including income for minor children and the ability of prisoners to work after their release.”
“A jail sentence should not be a death sentence or punishment with a poorly understood but debilitating disease, much less so should an arrest result in a death sentence,” the pleading notes.
The TRO requests strongly argues that the inmates have “no adequate remedy at law, as damages would not suffice to compensate neither the potential serious physical injury resulting from COVID-19, nor an untimely death.”
“Many of the plaintiffs suffer from comorbidity, including heart disease, and asthma. Because the Sheriff is also the Coroner, and reporting has been limited to the Sheriff’s website, it is unknown whether there have been any resulting deaths or whether there were required hospitalization due to the corona virus if the death did not take place inside the Jail,” the pleading charges
And, in relating the dangers of the virus, the complaint affirms that “The health risks of COVID -19 are still being uncovered, with the recent new information that children infected with COVID -19 sometimes suffer serious coronary side effects, and that individuals can develop frost bite like symptoms in their toes, and even young patients can experience debilitating strokes.
“The most dangerous and imminent harm from the corona virus is the high rate of death. Given the extraordinary steps all branches of government in California have taken, including closing public facilities to the public, and the broad shelter-in-place health emergency orders, there is no question COVID-19 produces imminent harm. The Plaintiffs and even more so, the members of plaintiff class, have no adequate remedy at law for the injuries they have suffered and will suffer in the immediate future.”
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Does this really surprise anyone? It’s a possible get out of jail free card.
https://kfiam640.iheart.com/content/2020-05-11-la-county-inmates-purposely-try-to-infect-themselves-with-covid-19/
Folk should consider source of cite…
https://kfiam640.iheart.com/
Drill down… one way or the other, goes to veracity, biases…
I don’t judge the source, except for myself…
B.M., there’s a video included in the article of the inmates sharing a cup and sharing the same face mask.
Thanks for referring to me as B.M. … why I went by Will, or William for many years… “typist’s initials” when I actually had someone prepare letters/correspondence… found WM better…
Butt at least I understand your apparent view of me… so, I’ll movement on… bowelling night… if any bowelling alleys are open… they might not be “essential”… not sure…
No intent on my part, people are often referred to by their initials on here. AM, RO, KO, JB…..ETC….
Why is my comment awaiting moderation?
It’s totally on topic and shows how inmates are purposely trying to infect themselves with COVID to get out of jail.
If the Vanguard doesn’t like the facts then refute them through discussion, not through trying to muzzle alternative views.
I put it in the moderation queue so David could assess whether your link to a talk radio show was acceptable for the Vanguard. In the future, don’t ask about this or debate it on the Vanguard. Contact me or David if you have a question about moderation actions.
No censorship here, on the VG… two of KO’s have disappeared, my response to the first, also… heil…
Thanks Bill for acknowledging the censure.
No prob, bro… but mine questioned your first cite… sure you want to go there?
But, sincerely, best to you and yours… we may have very different views, but when social distancing is over, wouldn’t mind having a java, bagel, etc. with you… (or a beer)
I suspect yours (posts) will be restored, mine not, as I’m already in the ‘penalty box’ due to responding to another poster… whatever [moderator, am not questioning moderation! (much)]
But you and yours, be safe, be well, stay sane… may God bless…
Bill, I posted a Sac Bee link too.
This story is out there, from ABC to CNN.
I could post all kinds of sources.
Same to you Bill, stay safe. We may not agree a lot but I would never want you censured.
What are you thinking should be said about this other than – perhaps the jails should be taking social distancing more seriously if there are 30 people with positive tests right now?
Keith..
Yes, saw that after I hit the “post” button… am sincere about best to you and yours… transcends other ‘arguments’…
Why is my comment awaiting moderation?
It’s totally on topic and shows how inmates are purposely trying to infect themselves with COVID to get out of jail.
If the Vanguard doesn’t like the facts then refute them through discussion, not through trying to muzzle alternative views.
or muzzling responses to refute facts stated in those alternative views… I have no problem with alternative views… sharpens my facts, and alternative-alternative views… but pretty sure this post will be deleted…
I think this is too important not to have a discussion about.
Does this really surprise anyone? It’s a possible get out of jail free card.
https://kfiam640.iheart.com/content/2020-05-11-la-county-inmates-purposely-try-to-infect-themselves-with-covid-19/
From the Sac Bee:
https://www.sacbee.com/news/article242653871.html
Here Keith we agree…
Some will manipulate anything, any circumstance if it advantages them… doesn’t mean it is right…
David says:
The 30 inmates purposely caught it from each other in order to further their chances of getting out of jail. If you read the article there were 30 cases within two weeks of these inmates purposely sharing a water cup and a face mask. It looks like they were successful infecting each other. With all the social warriors out there trying to use COVID as a reason to open up our jails and release convicts are you really surprised inmates are trying to infect themselves?
Actually what the article said was: “He said there’s no evidence the mask or water container came from an infected inmate, and the prisoners may have just been trying to spread the virus if they had it.”
In any case, doesn’t change my view of how to proceed. Or the severity of this.
It doesn’t take Einstein to figure out that inmates will purposely try to infect themselves or others if they know it will lead to the releasing of prisoners. The video shows just that.
Of course, but that’s not how people are getting out.
“The sheriff said the inmates mistakenly believed that if they were infected they would be freed.”
Yes, but it all feeds into the narrative. Are you actually surprised that inmates are doing this?