Sacramento sheriff ordered to release more inmates from jails over coronavirus concerns

Sacramento County Sheriff Scott Jones’ office says a court has ordered additional inmate releases from its two jails because of the coronavirus pandemic, a move that will lead to 421 more prisoners being set free by Monday.

The order from Sacramento Superior Court directs the sheriff to release any inmates who have less than 60 days remaining on their sentences and who are not serving time for domestic violence, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs or any offense that requires registration as a sex offender.

The move comes a week after the sheriff’s office released 120 inmates from the Main Jail downtown and the Rio Cosumnes Correctional Center near Elk Grove under a court order allowing the release of non-violent, non-serious offenders with less than 30 days to serve.

The inmate with the longest time to serve in that release had 11 days to go, and Sheriff’s spokeswoman Sgt. Tess Deterding said the release allowed Jones’ office to free up units at both jails that could be used to isolate inmates who test positive for COVID-19.

So far, none have, she said Wednesday.

The releases come as part of a nationwide wave of prisoner releases by state prison systems and county jails as judges and law enforcement officials attempt to keep the highly contagious disease from spreading inside the confined spaces of jails and prisons.

In California, attorneys for thousands of inmates inside the prisons are arguing that many elderly, infirm or non-violent prisoners must be released before the pandemic spreads through the state’s prisons, which currently are at about 131 percent of design capacity and house some inmates in dormitory-style settings with hundreds of bunk beds.

As of Wednesday, state corrections officials said one inmate and nine workers had tested positive for coronavirus.

This story was originally published March 25, 2020 at 5:38 PM.