Covid Returns to California’s Prisons and the California Department of Correctios & Rehabilitation (“CDCR”) Cannot Protect Incarcerated People

When Covid first began to be evidenced in California’s prisons in 2020, CDCR’s instinct was to keep the information away from the public, especially since much of the early spread of the disease was caused by the horrible errors CDCR made in transferring people who had contracted the disease to prisons where there had been no evidence of it, like San Quentin. Even though Covid was being brought into prisons by CDCR employees who brought the disease into the prison from outside, the powerful prison guards union (CPOA) refused to get vaccinated. Prison guards and other employees were contracting Covid at a higher rate than the general public because they refused vaccines. The State Department of Health ordered that all state employees get vaccinated, but the union challenged the Order in court and found a sympathetic judge who ruled in their favor. Covid spread widely throughout California’s prisons with over 250 incarcerated people dying. There was so little outcry because far too few people care about the lives of incarcerated folks.

Life Support Alliance (LSA) is a very effective nonprofit that provides a variety of essential services to lifers in prison (lifers are serving the longest sentences and therefor have the greatest needs). Its brilliant ED knows more about the parole process and parole hearings than anyone in California and never misses a meeting of the California Bureau of Parole Hearings. LSA publishes a very informative newsletter that everyone interested in prison reform should read and they provide daily reports on the number of incarcerated people and the number of prison guards who have tested positive for Covid. Below is a recent (June 10) email containing that information. It is disturbing because more people are testing positive, both residents and prison staff, and still staff is not required to get vaccinated.

If you want to learn more about California prisons and the work of LSA, as well as some exceptional opportunities for you or someone you know to volunteer to work with LSA or to attend their seminars for the families of incarcerated people or for incarcerated people, go to their website or ask the author. LSA operates on a shoestring and needs volunteer help.