Third inmate with COVID-19 dies in Kentucky prison where about 400 are infected
A third state inmate died last weekend after testing positive for COVID-19 at Green River Correctional Complex in Western Kentucky, and nearly 400 of the prison’s inmates and staff have tested positive for the novel coronavirus after a sweeping review just concluded.
“It says that this is a concerning situation at that facility,” Gov. Andy Beshear said Tuesday evening at his daily news conference.
The inmates now will be segregated between several different dorms at Green River based on their COVID status, Beshear said.
Beshear disputed that his administration waited too long to test all of the inmates at Green River, where the outbreak began five weeks ago when two staff members tested positive on March 25. The first inmate tested positive on April 5.
“I thought that with the situation where it was that now was the time to take a very significant step,” Beshear told reporters. Moving hundreds of felons around inside the prison complex “can be a little dangerous. But we’ve got to take that step to protect those that are inside,” he said.
The latest deceased inmate — whose name and home county were not released — tested positive April 28. His subsequent medical care was provided by staff at the prison who regularly checked on him, said Department of Corrections spokeswoman Lisa Lamb.
Dr. William Ralston, the state’s chief medical examiner, performed an autopsy, and the cause of death is pending, Lamb said.
The inmate had 26 years left to serve on a 35-year sentence, Lamb said. His family has been notified, she said.
The coronavirus has spread rapidly through the 982-bed medium/minimum security prison in Muhlenberg County, forcing corrections officials to scramble in their response.
In recent days, 1,081 inmates and staff at the prison were tested, with results in 1,029 of those tests having been returned by Tuesday, state officials said. The infection rate of about 40 percent is high but not uncommon for confined populations, where people cannot socially distance, officials said.
Many of those who tested positive have displayed no symptoms, Beshear said.
Green River inmates have complained about a lack of cleaning and masks at the prison and about coronavirus-positive men sharing spaces with others. Corrections officials have said that inmates with COVID-19 were housed in isolation with their cellmates once their health status was determined, since their cellmates already had been exposed.
“It’s just insane in here. You’ve got six guys who have tested positive living in my dorm, and they’re exposing it to everyone else,” Green River inmate Jeffrey Rowland said Monday in a phone interview. “The Aramark workers in the kitchen, they’re not wearing masks like they’re supposed to. The (corrections) officers wear them when they want to.”
On Tuesday, the Beshear administration said the prison will segregate Green River inmates between different dorms depending on whether they have tested positive for the virus; tested negative for the virus but come into contact with someone who tested positive; are medically vulnerable to the disease; or have had no known contact with the virus.
Widespread testing was only done five weeks after the outbreak began at the prison, inmates and their families noted.
“I’m glad the governor tested everyone, but he shouldn’t have waited so long. These guys were sentenced to prison time, not a death sentence,” Phoenix Shepherd, whose husband is a Green River inmate, said Tuesday.
“We are all frustrated and aggravated that they did not act quick enough and they still don’t have a resolution for the situation,” Shepherd said. “They’re moving them around to different dorms, but guess what? The ventilation systems are all connected.”
Rowland said he doesn’t believe prison officials know how to handle the situation. “Like, this hand sanitizer they say they’re handing out? I haven’t seen any of it,” he said. “When this first started, they put out two hand sanitizers in the cafeteria, and both of those were expired, but at least they were there. That’s the last I saw of any sanitizer in here.”
The Corrections Department says it has distributed cloth masks to inmates and staff at its 13 prisons, and staff are expected to wear them. The prisons have suspended inmate visitation, volunteer activities and outside programming to limit the number of people coming and going. Staff are screened for COVID-19 symptoms every day when they show up for work, Lamb said.
Also, since the coronavirus pandemic began, Beshear has signed three executive orders approving the early release of 1,236 state inmates serving their time in local jails and state prisons, out of a total of about 24,000.
This story was originally published May 5, 2020 at 10:34 AM.
