of the largest U.S. COVID-19 clusters are in jails and prisons.[]“Coronavirus in the U.S.: Latest Map and Case Count,” The New York Times, accessed September 9, 2020.
Ensure that the platform entry on COVID-19 includes key components on reform to the criminal justice system.
Prisons, jails, policing, community supervision, and courts all will play pivotal roles in the nation’s ongoing response to COVID-19—and whether we are able to contain its spread effectively. Critically, we should reduce to the greatest extent possible the number of people who must physically be present in criminal justice settings. When it is unavoidable for people to be in these settings, we should put into place full precautions to protect the health of system staff and justice-involved people.
Explore our COVID-19 related resources below.
From The Blog
COVID-19 Imperils People in Rural Jails
It appears to be just a matter of time until things get much worse, especially when one considers the lack of rural health care resources: 128 hospitals have closed in rural counties since 2010. People in jails and prisons are among the people most at risk for contracting COVID-19—and rural America is home to a large number of state and federal pri ...
News
-
Jacob Kang-Brown
-
Jasmine Heiss
Responding to COVID-19: Focusing on People in the Criminal Justice and Immigration Systems
People who are incarcerated at the following facilities have already tested positive: the Rikers Island jail complex and the Metropolitan Detention Center in New York City; the Nassau County Correctional Center in East Meadow, New York; the Larimer County Community Corrections program in Fort Collins, Colorado; the Massachusetts Treatment Center in ...
News
-
Logan Schmidt
Use this Data to Hold Your Local Jail Accountable During the Pandemic
News
-
Christian Henrichson
-
Oliver Hinds
Policymakers Must Lift the Veil on COVID-19 in Jails and Prisons
We know the problem is bad, but we don’t know the details, particularly surrounding how COVID-19 in correctional facilities is impacting people of color. Currently, no central government reporting and collection agency, such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), tracks the data on COVID-19 in correctional facilities. Nonprofits a ...
News
-
Micah Haskell-Hoehl
-
Logan Schmidt
More from Election 2020
Series: Election 2020
Postsecondary Education in Prison
Postsecondary education opportunities for incarcerated people
Luke Sharrett | The New York Times | Redux
Series: Election 2020
Policing
Systemic reform of American policing
Photo by Martin Jernberg | Unsplash
Series: Election 2020
Due Process for Immigrants
No one should be denied due process
Series: Election 2020
Rural Jails
Eliminating rural jail funding; investing in communities
Series: Election 2020
Money Injustice
Photo by Tyler Rutherford | Unsplash
Series: Election 2020
Conditions of Confinement
Transforming prison culture and climate
Series: Election 2020
Prosecution
Electing reform-minded prosecutors
Series: Election 2020
Target 2020
Justice Solutions for a New Decade
Series: Election 2020
Justice Is on the Ballot
Commit to vote. Make a plan to vote. Register to vote.
Series: Election 2020
Budget Justice
"Budgets are moral documents"
Series: Election 2020
Vera's 2020 Justice Platform
Justice Recommendations for Progress