National Roundup

Maryland
County asks judge to toss suit over virus in jail
GREENBELT, Md. (AP) — One of Maryland’s largest counties has asked a federal judge to throw out a civil rights group’s lawsuit that claims its jail has failed to stop an “uncontrolled” coronavirus outbreak or properly care for infected prisoners.

The class action suit filed Tuesday by Civil Rights Corps claims Prince George’s County Jail prisoners who test positive for COVID-19 are isolated in cells with walls covered in feces, mucus and blood.

“They are barely monitored and receive no real treatment,” the suit says.

The Washington, D.C.-based group’s suit asks the court to order the immediate release of medically vulnerable prisoners. U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis in Greenbelt, Maryland, instructed the county to file a written response to the suit’s claims before she rules.

In a court filing Sunday, attorneys for the county said jail officials acted proactively to protect inmates and staff from the virus. Mary Lou McDonough, director of the county’s corrections department, “led the way” among correctional facilities in Maryland to prepare for the COVID-19 pandemic, county officials wrote.

The county says the jail’s average daily population has dropped from 720 to 560 inmates since March 1, with 18 confirmed cases of COVID-19 among the jail population. None of the infected inmates have been hospitalized, and 10 of them have fully recovered and returned to the jail’s general population, the county says.

McDonough is the only defendant named in the suit.

Civil Rights Corps has filed similar suits over conditions at jails in Miami, Dallas, Chicago and Detroit.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and those with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness and even death.


Hawaii
Virus prompts court’s order of faster nonviolent inmate release
HONOLULU (AP) — The Hawaii Supreme Court has ordered judicial system officials to move more quickly in complying with its decision for the release nonviolent inmates because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The order issued Friday focused on lower court judges, prosecutors and the state Department of Public Safety, The Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported  Sunday.

The Supreme Court last week ordered the Department of the Attorney General, the Office of the Public Defender, the Hawaii Paroling Authority and county prosecutors to release as many nonviolent offenders from Hawaii’s eight jails and prisons as quickly as possible.

The requests for inmate releases are to be considered individually by judges.

The order came in response to a lawsuit against the state by public defender James Tabe seeking the expedited early release of hundreds of nonviolent inmates.

The lawsuit argued Hawaii’s historically overcrowded jails and prisons cannot meet federal Centers for Disease Control guidelines for avoiding COVID-19 infections.

While no positive cases were reported at the facilities as of Sunday, inmate advocates warn that Hawaii inmate infections are likely imminent, citing large numbers of infections in jails across the continental U.S.
For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia and death. The vast majority of people recover.

The public defender office said 528 motions were filed on behalf of inmates included on a list the public safety department deemed eligible for release based on criteria established by the high court.

Statistics were not available on how many requests have been approved or denied.

The Supreme Court’s order reiterated its earlier mandate that the burden is on prosecutors to show eligible inmates should not be released based solely on the grounds of risk to individuals or the public.

The high court also said the public safety department must ensure inmates are issued protective masks. There is no timetable, but the court’s language suggested the equipment distribution should be done quickly.

Florida
Welcome mat at home seeks warrant and deputies did
PALM COAST, Fla. (AP) — A welcome mat at the front door of a Florida home read “come back with a warrant” — and that’s just what deputies did before finding drugs and drug paraphernalia inside.

The Daytona Beach News-Journal reports  the home in Palm Coast was part of an investigation into illegal drugs. After seeing the doormat, authorities say the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office got the warrant.
Deputies found fentanyl and drug paraphernalia inside during a search late last week.

“This poison peddler had a doormat that said, ‘Come back with a warrant,’ so we did!” Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly said. “Our detectives did a great job in following up on tips received on this residence. We still have some follow-up work to do, but for now the deadly drugs and syringes seized are off the streets.”

Investigators say there were four people inside but no arrests were made immediately. The Florida Department of Children and Families were contacted regarding a child at the home.

New Hampshire
ACLU calls sharing names of virus patients ‘alarming’
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — The New Hampshire chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union is raising concerns about the state providing first responders with the names of people who have tested positive for the coronavirus.

Working with the attorney general’s office, the Department of Health and Human Services and many dispatch centers have agreed to memoranda of understanding to disclose such information to law enforcement, firefighters, paramedics and public health providers.

State officials say the release is permitted under a provision of the federal health privacy law that allows information to be disclosed for the greater benefit of protecting public health. The information is the minimum necessary to allow first responders to limit their potential exposure to the virus. The agreement requires the destruction of the information after 21 days.

Devon Chaffee, executive director of the ACLU, said it is alarming that private medical information is being shared without people’s consent.

“As the ACLU has said during this pandemic and in the past, we must be extremely cautious about abandoning privacy rights during times of crises, particularly given that history says we may not regain those rights later,” she said.