photo credit: Dan Henson // Shutterstock
California prisons have decided to release 3,500 prisoners early as officials fear overcrowding will increase the spread of the coronavirus.
Those being released are serving terms of nonviolent crimes or people due to be released within 60 days. Being that the state has blocked the transfer of county jail inmates to prison, this decision will keep an additional 3,000 people out of prison. Abut 600 inmates will be moved out of dorms and into other prison facilities, to lessen the close proximity of bunks and shared sinks/showers.
Jails and prisons are breeding grounds for the virus, with conditions that are often filthy and way too many people packed inside.
For the other U.S. prisoners across the country, the Federal Bureau of Prisons has announced a 14 day lockdown, meaning every prisoner will be kept in their assigned cell for the next 14 days to try to slow the spread of the virus. This is set to go into effect Wednesday.
We’ve already see R. Kelly and Tekashi 69 request to be released due to COVID-19.
In regards to R. Kelly, who is asking to be released on bond, prosecutors say he isn’t old enough to be considered high-risk, which is 65 or older. Adding that he has been provided with plenty of soap and cleaning supplies.
Could we see this trend pick up across the country?
Source: TMZ