FAQs about Coronavirus and the Correctional System

Today’s post shares my answers to some of the questions I have been asked related to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the correctional system. As you might imagine, many of those questions are focused on ways to reduce jail and prison populations. At the time of this writing there are no confirmed cases of COVID-19 in North Carolina’s prison system. But of course there is cause for concern about that. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued interim guidance on management of coronavirus for correctional facilities on March 23, available here. That guidance acknowledges the “unique challenges for control of COVID-19 transmission among incarcerated/detained persons, staff, and visitors.” The Attorney General of the United States today issued guidance directing the Federal Bureau of Prisons to prioritize the use of home confinement, as allowed under federal law, in certain circumstances. North Carolina’s Department of Public Safety summarized the actions it has taken in response to the pandemic here. As of yesterday (March 25), those measures include: Suspension of the work release program. Extra precautions for offender populations with chronic diseases that make them medically vulnerable. Limitations on educational and other self-improvement programs and suspension of face-to-face instruction by the community colleges. The prison population increased slightly this week—perhaps primarily due to the movement of about 200 of the 1,000 sentenced inmates who were awaiting transfer from the jails to prison (“jail backlog” inmates) as the state tried to give some relief to the counties. Advocates are pushing for ways [...]