Introduction

Prison Pandemic

Art by Roger Peet, from justseeds.org

The global health crisis caused by COVID-19 poses a deadly risk to the vulnerable populations trapped within California’s prisons, jails, and detention facilities. California's rapidly aging prison population is forced into overcrowded and unsanitary facilities where hundreds of thousands are now serving a potential death sentence. Immunocompromised, chronically ill, and elderly prisoners are defenseless to the dangers of the life-threatening virus without adequate access to personal protective equipment, cleaning supplies, and space to socially distance as recommended by the CDC. Nearly 37% of the total prison population are at risk of severe illness from COVID-19 according to CDC guidelines. As the pandemic lingers, incarcerated people lack access to basic information about its spread or the ability to protect themselves. 

Introduction