This letter was written by a person incarcerated at Soledad.
The building I live in has an A-side and B-side. It is three tiers (floors/levels) and it is cell living. The way they have it set up is, A-side is quarantine for the infected and B-side is for the one’s that are negative and show no detection of symptoms of COVID. There’s movement though both sides by correctional officers, free staff (as nurses), and inmates (as porters and kitchen workers), and it’s still spreading this way. It’s cycling around.
This is a health hazard, limiting health safety of self and others. There is very limited to no movement on a daily basis. This adds a potential life sentence to my already life sentence that I’m serving.
In the free world, people can adjust to social distancing from others, but for myself and other inmates, we are not afforded that liberty. We are forced to be close to one another in cells, dorms, restrooms, eating facilities, gyms, and outdoor areas. Due to the dense population and close proximity, the coronavirus can spread rapidly throughout the prison.
As of 12/15/2020, in this institution of CTF, Correctional Training Facility, combining the three facilities of North, South, and Central there has been 912 inmates with COVID-19 and counting, and five deaths so far. Once again, correctional officers, mental health providers, and medical staff consistently come in and out of prison, presenting a higher risk of infection for us inmates.
The prison’s health care is the worst, and is not reliable. They do not respond quickly and we do not receive the medical treatment needed to fight, recover, or stop the spread of this deadly virus within the prison.
I have personally been tested for COVID-19 seven times (last one on the 23rd of December 2020), have resulted negative – no detection or symptoms from mid November and I am still on lockdown/quarantine for no reason. What’s the point?
