This letter was written by a person incarcerated at Orange County Theo Lacy Jail.
UCI: So what is the COVID situation like currently, since people are getting vaccinated?
Caller: It’s still the same, honestly. They, just last month, I think on the 15th, March 15th, they had opened up visits for once a month, but I guess this month, they’re opening up visits. You can have a 30 minute visit twice a month, for 30 minutes only twice a month, but, you know what I mean? But that’s as far as visits go.
UCI: Oh.
Caller: Yeah.
UCI: So has- what have you been able to do to make the situation better with all of the rules and stuff that have been in place?
Caller: Honestly, like, not much. But, I’ve been coping with it, you know what I mean? By, you know what I mean, working out, reading a book, you know what I mean? Just, know what I mean? Or, getting phone time, calling my people, my loved ones out there, and seeing how they’re doing. And that’s basically how I’ve been coping with my situation.
But most people in here don’t really have that, you know what I mean? Some people in here honestly don’t have no one to talk to and like those are the people honestly I feel for them ‘cause, you know what I mean, they’re the ones that are honestly going through it. And, you know what I mean, especially ‘cause this situation, this pandemic.
UCI: Yeah, I totally get that. What was the- when the pandemic first started, what was the facility you’re at doing to keep everyone safe and healthy?
Caller: What was the facility doing to keep everyone safe and healthy?
UCI: Yeah.
Caller: Well, okay, when the pandemic started, I was currently in prison. I was at North Kern State prison, and at first, when the pandemic started, they had, we had no contact with the other buildings. There’s two buildings on the yard, so there were like, probably like 200-man buildings, that each building would hold.
So there was no contact with the other building, we would each take turns going to the yard, and being able to get fresh air.
And at first they weren’t regulating on mask-wearing, but then they started regulating on mask-wearing. We were to have our- we had to have our masks on when we left our bunk, but as long as we were, near where we live, we didn’t have to have our mask. And, you know what I mean, that’s pretty much, you know what I mean, what happened.
