This story was told by a person incarcerated at Fresno County Jail.
UCI: How has the COVID situation been like at your facility?
Caller: Oh, no, it’s really bad at our facility. They got us at three people to a bunk. There’s no such thing as six feet distancing. And I got a couple other homeboys in here that would like to share their stories, too, about the pandemic.
Whoever – whoever comes in this pod, and if they got COVID, they have to be safely removed from the pod because we don’t want to go on quarantine. And quarantine – quarantine, if somebody tests positive, they cut off visits. They cut off – you can’t get no medical attention or none of that.
UCI: Wow, that sounds really really rough. How have you been coping with this?
Caller: Yeah, I’ve been trying to just let it – let it fly by, you know, because there’s not really nothing we can do about it because it’s, I mean, all the staff, it’s them against us, you know? We’re criminals. They’re not. We’re crooks. They’re not, you know?
UCI: Yeah, but do you think there’s anything they could do to make your situation better?
Caller: Yeah. I mean, yeah, there’s lots of things. I mean, they should test the people and see if they got COVID before they release them into a pod, you know, because that – when somebody comes in fresh off the street, and if they have COVID, they’re going to give it to all the other inmates, and then that’s bad. You know, that’s risking lives – risking for one person that just got booked in off the street.
UCI: Yeah, I understand. That must be really hard for you and you’re – and everyone else there.
Caller: Yeah, I know. It is. It is.
UCI: And what has it been like for you to have reduced visitation and programming?
Caller: Excuse me? What did you say?
UCI: I asked you what it must have been like for you to have reduced visitation and programming?
Caller: Yeah, it’s kind of hard, you know, because I want to see my ma, you know, or my grandmama, you know, and we can’t get no visits, you know, if we’re on quarantine, which we currently, right now, are on quarantine.
UCI: And how long will this quarantine last for you?
Caller: 17 days.
UCI: And are you allowed to see people after those 17 days?
Caller: Yeah, we are allowed to see people after those 17 days, but it’s only on each Monday.
UCI: Is there anything else you want people to know about your experience?
Caller: Yeah there’s a – well, there’s not really nothing else to say further through the phone. Would you like to hear stories from other people while you are on this phone conversation right now?
UCI: I think I would rather hear your stories first.
Caller: All right. Thank you. Well, yeah, it does get a little out of hand in here when people got COVID, you know, but, I mean, as long as we don’t put in those sick call slips and try to leave the pod, we’re good.
Yeah, because if we put in a sick call slip, and we try to say that we are sick, they’ll take us out of the pod and put the whole pod on quarantine. And nobody wants to be on quarantine because if you get put on quarantine, you don’t go to court. You can’t get your time sent in, just none of that.
They won’t allow that. Yeah, you can’t go to court and finish with your case or nothing, you know. That’s all I got to share.
UCI: Alright. Yeah. Thank you for participating in PrisonPandemic. And if your friends still want to talk to us, can you let them know they could call in, as well?
Caller: Yeah. I got your letter, matter of fact.
UCI: Yeah.
Caller: Yeah, I got you’re – the Kristin Turney PrisonPandemic Project UC Irvine.
UCI: Yeah.
Caller: Yeah, I got that letter. Thank you for sending me the letter. I actually wrote to you guys, too, and I wrote a little letter about it. I’m not sure if you guys got it.
UCI: Oh, yeah, thank you for writing in. We will make sure that your stories are heard.
Caller: That’s right. Alright.
UCI: Alright. Thank you. Yeah, thank you for calling. Have a great night.
Caller: Alright. Likewise. Alright. Bye.
UCI: Alright. Bye.
