District Attorney Krasner Joins Calls for Governor Wolf to Prevent Coronavirus Outbreaks in Prisons
CONTACT:
Jane Roh, District Attorney’s Office, 215–686–8711, Jane.Roh@phila.gov
PHILADELPHIA (April 8, 2020) — District Attorney Larry Krasner on Wednesday expressed alarm at state officials’ seeming reluctance to protect communities from COVID-19 outbreaks, and joined calls for Governor Tom Wolf to use his reprieve power immediately in order to protect all Pennsylvanians, including people who work or are held in state prisons and their surrounding communities.
“Pennsylvania continues to lag behind other states in safely reducing county jail and state prisons populations, just as we have confirmation of COVID-19 cases in all 67 counties. A Philadelphia police officer, three SEPTA employees, and health care professionals are among the 310 confirmed deaths, and residents have been instructed to brace for the pandemic’s peak here,” District Attorney Krasner said. “The time to act in order to save lives was three weeks ago, but we can still prevent a lot of harm by acting right now. State correctional facilities are hotbeds for the rapid spread of coronavirus, and if there are outbreaks in these facilities there will soon be outbreaks outside of them in our communities. We must prevent from happening in Pennsylvania what has been happening at New York’s Rikers Island, where COVID-19 has been spreading more than 85 times faster than the average rate of infection in the U.S.”
The Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (PADOC) to date has confirmed three inmates have tested positive for COVID-19 in two counties, but has not disclosed the facilities where correctional workers and staff have tested positive. Approximately 45,000 people, of whom roughly 12,000 are considered by the PADOC to be vulnerable due to age or health, are housed in 25 state prisons. All four ventilators owned by the PADOC are currently in use, according to media reports.
Last week, The Appeal reported that the Office of General Counsel privately determined that Governor Wolf had the power to grant reprieves, which temporarily release prisoners who later return to complete their sentences, but that “it was not the preference” to use that power. People who are released by reprieve would be incentivized to return to facilities following the COVID-19 pandemic through favorable consideration at their first parole hearing, for instance. Those who do not return as directed would be subjected to being paroled later, if at all, or other additional punishments.
According to PADOC data, nearly 20,000 state inmates are being held in Minimum Custody, indicating they are a low-risk for violence or flight. Slightly more than 15,754 people are being held in Medium Custody.
“This week, a gutless legislative solution failed to gain traction in the Pennsylvania General Assembly. It was written to fail to reduce prison populations. This morning, Pennsylvania House Republicans admitted that their overtures toward protecting communities from COVID-19 were completely in bad faith,” District Attorney Krasner said. “This crisis calls for bold leadership a while ago, not political games now coming from the same legislators and irresponsible pro-incarceration lobbyists who have wrecked criminal justice in Pennsylvania with their mad love for mass incarceration. I urge Governor Wolf to use the power of reprieve, and all the power he has, to release state inmates who pose no threat to the public in order to protect all Pennsylvanians, including prison guards, workers, health care professionals, and inmates. A COVID-19 outbreak anywhere is an outbreak everywhere. This is about all Pennsylvanians’ health and safety.”
Also on Wednesday, more than 30 public health experts and practitioners sent a letter to Governor Wolf urging him to use his reprieve powers to prevent outbreaks in prisons and surrounding communities, and justice organizers across the Commonwealth were participating in a social media campaign calling for Governor Wolf to take immediate action.
The DAO will continue to share updates related to COVID-19 on social media feeds (@philadao on Twitter), and will encourage members of the public to check the city’s information website for important updates: phila.gov/COVID-19.
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The Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office is the largest prosecutor’s office in Pennsylvania, and one of the largest in the nation. It serves the more than 1.5 million citizens of the City and County of Philadelphia, employing 600 lawyers, detectives, and support staff. The District Attorney’s Office is responsible for prosecution of approximately 40,000 criminal cases annually.
