An outbreak of COVID-19 cases inside the Fort Dix federal prison is rapidly spreading. In October no inmates tested positive. On Thursday, there were 214 positive cases, according to a report from the Federal Bureau of Prisons. It’s the second-highest amount of active cases out of every system in the country (article available here).
The BOP appears to be losing the battle against COVID-19 on all fronts. Outbreaks have continued to fester at some longtime hotspots, and new ones—like Fort Dix—emerge constantly. In the midst of the crisis, the BOP has ramped up transfers between institutions, a move that corrections officers, prisoners, and outsiders alike say is sparking fresh outbreaks and undermining the agency’s efforts to contain the spread through quarantines and testing.
New Jersey U.S. Senators Robert Menendez and Cory Booker, along with a majority of the state’s congressional delegation, signed a letter addressed to BOP Director Michael Carvajal on Monday outlining their “grave concerns” over the current outbreak