SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Attorneys representing California inmates late Wednesday filed an emergency motion asking federal judges to free thousands of infirm and lower-security prisoners to prevent what they predict will otherwise be the catastrophic spread of coronavirus through a vulnerable population.
They want the judges to order the release of inmates who are at higher risk for complications from the disease, as well as nonviolent offenders who are within a year of being paroled.
Local jails throughout the country have already been doing this. So far, one prisoner and nine employees have tested positive.
But every day without action is “another lost opportunity to mitigate the effects of what we know is going to be a severe calamity,” said