A group of inmates at a Los Angeles County, California, jail were caught on video when they allegedly attempted to become infected with the coronavirus in search of a forced release.
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Sheriff Alex Villanueva released a video of the North County Correctional Center, where several inmates are seen passing and drinking from a hot water dispenser that they use to heat soups and hot drinks.
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“It’s crazy what they did”Villanueva told Univision News. “We can adopt any type of prevention, but not that people take risks against their own health,” he added. According to the sheriff, the inmates drank hot water from the same glass in an effort to generate a higher reading, the moment a nurse took their temperature.
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That video and one of surveillance “They show the inmates with the deliberate intention of becoming infected with the covid-19 virus”Villanueva said. About a dozen inmates are seen ignoring social distancing patterns, a move the sheriff planned before the covid-19 pandemic worsened.
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Since February, Villanueva began to release some 5,000 prisoners, out of a prison population of 17,000. They were inmates awaiting trial for less serious crimes, such as theft of property, or who were about to serve their sentence. No criminal who has committed serious crimes was released.
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Another video shows inmates sniffing out a mask, which was probably worn by someone infected, according to Villanueva. “As a result of this behavior, 21 inmates tested positive over the course of a week,” said the sheriff. “The inmates mistakenly believed that they could compel the authorities to release more individuals from custody. That will not happen ”, he clarified.
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Villanueva indicated that the cases at the North County Correctional Center, in the city of Castaic, “shot up overnight.” Nowadays, a total of 4,950 inmates or 40% of the prison population in the county they are in quarantine. A total of 357 tested positive for covid-19, of which 117 have already recovered.
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The doctor Christina Ghaly, The administrator of the hospital system and medical care in Los Angeles County jails confirmed at a conference that the increase in positive cases of coronavirus is concentrated in the Castaic facilities. So they implemented protective measures.
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“Our Department of Corrections Health Services is working closely with the Sheriff’s Department to continue the quarantine and establish isolation measures, as well as to urge prisoners to wear their cloth face masks,” Ghaly told the local press. “We are also in the process of implementing screening tests, including for all inmates,” he added.
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They denounce “terrible prison conditions”
However, sheriff critics of the organizations Dignity and Power Now and Youth Justice Coalition and a group of lawyers filed a federal lawsuit in the United States District Superior Court for the Central District of California against the Sheriff’s Department, which they accuse of “unconstitutional conditions and unconstitutional punishment of confinement”.
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“He (Villanueva) has to release more people, due to the terrible conditions inmates live in”, Michael Saavedra, a member of Youth Justice Coalition.
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“The video teaches the truth that prisoners are willing to make themselves sick with covid-19, due to the fact that the sheriff cannot control the pandemic; He has lied about what is happening and only shows negligence on his part when his job is to protect everyone, “he added.
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Another criticism of Villanueva, Patrisse Cullors, president of the board of directors of Dignity and Power Now, He said that Villanueva’s statements “highlight the deplorable conditions within our prisons, as well as neglect and poor health conditions in them.”
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“It is clear that the sheriff has lost all control and has no idea to what extent the disease is spreading in prisons,” he told Univision News in a written statement. “The sheriff must release prisoners and the Board of Supervisors must immediately approve a motion offering universal testing for all prisoners,” he said.
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Before this demand, Villanueva assured that he will defend himself “only with the truth.”
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