COVID-19 in Prisons

If you have a loved one in federal prison, you may want to know how hard COVID-19 hit prisons, and whether a health risk can ever be a reason for early release. This article records how the virus spread through state and federal prisons as of mid-July 2020. The question of early release is covered near the end.

These figures are a historical snapshot. The numbers are as of July 14, 2020, and are not kept up to date. Source: state and federal prison agencies.

What does this 2020 data show?

In 2020, data was collected on COVID-19 infections in state and federal prisons. The figures below show how the virus had affected prisons in each state, and in the federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP), the agency that runs federal prisons, as of mid-July 2020.

How many prisoners had COVID-19?

As of July 14, 2020, at least 64,119 people in prison had tested positive. That was about 13 percent more than one week earlier. At least 40,528 prisoners had recovered.

New cases among prisoners hit a record high that week, after slowing in June. Much of the rise came from large increases in positive tests in Texas, California, and the federal Bureau of Prisons, along with outbreaks in Idaho, Iowa, Oregon, and South Carolina.

Cases first peaked in late April 2020. That is when states such as Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee, and Texas started testing large numbers of prisoners. Those tests suggested that many more people than anyone knew had been carrying the virus without symptoms.

How many prisoners died?

The first known prisoner death from COVID-19 was in Georgia. Anthony Cheek, age 49, died on March 26, 2020. He had been held at Lee State Prison near Albany, Georgia, an area hit hard by the disease. By July 14, 2020, at least 680 more prisoners had died of causes related to the virus. The total number of deaths rose 5 percent in the week before July 14.

How many cases did each state report?

Each line shows the state, its total cases, and its cases per 10,000 prisoners, as of July 14, 2020.

• Texas — 12,071 — 861
• Federal — 8,896 — 516
• California — 6,458 — 545
• Ohio — 5,082 — 1,042
• Michigan — 3,801 — 1,009
• Arkansas — 3,482 — 1,915
• Tennessee — 3,186 — 1,506
• New Jersey — 2,892 — 1,598
• Florida — 2,632 — 287
• Virginia — 1,530 — 536
• Connecticut — 1,346 — —
• Georgia — 1,064 — 194
• North Carolina — 1,052 — 311
• Kansas — 910 — 920
• Indiana — 728 — 271
• Idaho — 694 — 908
• Colorado — 668 — 384
• Louisiana — 663 — 210
• Maryland — 628 — 334
• Kentucky — 624 — 530
• Arizona — 569 — 137
• South Carolina — 563 — 317
• New York — 545 — 127
• New Mexico — 467 — 709
• Massachusetts — 391 — 478
• Minnesota — 390 — 452
• Illinois — 337 — 91
• Oregon — 314 — 217
• Pennsylvania — 292 — 66
• Wisconsin — 291 — 129
• Delaware — 288 — 623
• Washington — 277 — 163
• Missouri — 245 — 94
• Iowa — 224 — 267
• Alabama — 138 — 65
• West Virginia — 126 — 245
• Mississippi — 86 — 46
• Vermont — 47 — 334
• Utah — 38 — 62
• Rhode Island — 18 — —
• Nevada — 18 — 14
• Oklahoma — 11 — 5
• Montana — 11 — 29
• Nebraska — 8 — 14
• North Dakota — 7 — 56
• South Dakota — 4 — 11
• Maine — 4 — 20
• Alaska — 2 — 4
• New Hampshire — 1 — 4
• Hawaii — 0 — 0
• Wyoming — — — —

A dash (—) means no figure was reported.

How were prison staff affected?

Prisoners were not the only people at risk. Correctional officers, nurses, chaplains, wardens, and other prison workers could also get sick, and they could carry the virus into prisons and back home to their communities. Much less was known about staff, because many prison workers were not being tested on a regular basis.

In the week before July 14, 2020, 18 states reported how many staff members they had tested: Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Idaho, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, and West Virginia. Where states did report staff cases, most said the count included only workers who chose to report a diagnosis, often when calling in sick.

How many prison staff got sick or died?

As of July 14, 2020, more than 13,863 prison staff members had tested positive, and 47 staff deaths had been publicly reported. As with prisoners, new staff cases that week were the highest since tracking began.

Where can you find current information?

For current information about the federal prison system, check the Federal Bureau of Prisons website.

Federal Bureau of Prisons (bop.gov)

Can a health risk help someone get out of federal prison early?

Sometimes. A judge can reduce a federal sentence through compassionate release when there are "extraordinary and compelling reasons." For the rules and the process, see our sister site, compassionaterelease.com.

Learn about compassionate release at compassionaterelease.com

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What should you do next?

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