As Coronavirus Surges In WA Prisons, Advocates Call For Action

SEATTLE — Attorneys and community advocates are renewing the call to protect Washington inmates amid a spike in coronavirus cases among the state's prison population.

Columbia Legal Service hosted a virtual news conference this week, joined by family members of incarcerated people, activists and three elected lawmakers, to address the swift rise in illnesses inside the Department of Corrections.

According to the DOC, at least 1,639 inmates have active infections out of the 2,517 diagnosed since the pandemic began. As the third wave in illness continues to grow across the state, cases have also surged inside the state's prisons and work release programs.

"We are currently seeing the most significant string of COVID outbreaks within DOC facilities since the pandemic began," said Nick Allen, deputy director of advocacy at Columbia Legal Services. "Among these outbreaks is a common pattern of failure by DOC to respond to and control the virus, and the numbers are staggering: almost 800 new infections at Airway Heights in Spokane, over 400 new infections at the Washington Corrections Center in Shelton, and over 240 new infections at Stafford Creek in Aberdeen."

Recent outbreaks have not been limited to prisons, extending to work release programs, which serve as the last step for many inmates between incarceration and freedom. Allen said one such outbreak in October infected 35 out of 49 people at the Bishop Lewis work release program in Seattle.

"71 percent of the residents at Bishop Lewis would not have become infected had DOC employed appropriate protocols," Allen said. "Instead, almost unimaginable steps were taken there that were in direct conflict with public health guidelines. Delayed testing, residents having to continue to share restrooms and other common areas, and some residents being forced to stay in their room with roommates who had tested positive."

In prisons, inmates, family members and advocates have repeatedly described overcrowding in cells, failures to enforce mask use, limited support for hygiene needs and the use of solitary confinement as medical isolation.

"DOC's strategy for attempting to control the virus in prisons remains placing these facilities in lockdowns that result in frightening and inhumane conditions," Allen said. "People are confined in crowded cells for nearly 24 hours per day. They have limited access to restrooms. Food is served cold and infrequently. Communication with loved ones is severely restricted."

In the earliest weeks of the pandemic response, Columbia Legal Services led a lawsuit effort seeking the release of inmates most at-risk for COVID-19 complications, including those over 50, people with preexisting conditions, or inmates within 18 months of their release date. The effort sought to reduce the prison population enough to eliminate overcrowding, allowing for proper physical distancing and other public health measures.

"Back in March and April, when COVID first entered DOC facilities, people in prisons, their loved ones and advocates tried to tell anyone who would listen that if DOC did not take appropriate measures early on to protect people in prison and work release, the numbers we were seeing back then would pale in comparison to what we would see in the fall and winter," Allen said. "Unfortunately, these predictions have come true."

The Washington State Supreme Court granted an emergency motion in April, ordering the state to "take all necessary steps" to ensure safety for prisoners. Gov. Jay Inslee and DOC leadership identified roughly 1,000 inmates for early release, using commutations, furloughs and community monitoring. The inmates eligible had to be near the end of their sentences and without convictions for violent offenses or sex offenses.

Attorneys argued the state's plan failed to reduce the prison population by enough to make a difference and did not prioritize releases to include some of the people most at-risk.

Ultimately, the state's highest court rejected the effort to secure wider releases, finding the lawsuit failed to show that the state's plans "constitute deliberate indifference to the COVID-19 risk at the Department of Corrections facilities."

Since that time, advocates argue the problems have only gotten worse.

"The need to act now is even more urgent," Allen said. "DOC is in a crisis, and immediate action must be taken to ensure that they are held accountable and that the people in its custody are provided the same protections as everyone else in our community to remain safe."

Allen said the state's responsibility to enact protections for incarcerated people is the same as its mandate to ensure public safety for those on the outside.

"Vulnerable people and communities are vulnerable regardless of if they are your neighbors or in a prison 300 miles away," Allen said. COVID doesn't discriminate. The way we will collectively end this pandemic is by ensuring that all of our communities are following recommended public health protocols and practices. This is not optional for DOC, it is their duty."

The fastest course of action, Allen said, would be through directives from the governor and DOC. Barring that, state Sens. Joe Nguyen and Rebecca Saldaña said Monday they would explore potential legislative actions when lawmakers reconvene in early January.