Along with Fort Dix in New Jersey and the Philadelphia Federal Detention Center, a coronavirus outbreak at a federal detention center in downtown Los Angeles has left more than 200 inmates infected and forced prison officials to cancel detainees’ court appearances as part of a lockdown of the facility (article available here).
The number of inmates at the Metropolitan Detention Center who have tested positive for the virus increased to 209 Monday, despite a decision last week by the prison’s warden to impose strict limits on inmates’ movements and conduct more extensive testing.
In a letter last week, the warden alerted the U.S. District Court of the swift spread of the virus, which has infected more than a third of the 550 inmates, most of whom are housed at the facility while their court proceedings are underway.