Sickly Miami-Dade inmates, fearful of the coronavirus, file lawsuit to get out of jail

Civil rights groups have filed a federal lawsuit against the Miami-Dade jail system seeking the release of “medically vulnerable” inmates who may be at risk of catching the coronavirus.

Miami-Dade’s MetroWest Detention Center is a “petri dish for the coronavirus,” according to the lawsuit filed by the civil rights group, Dream Defenders, and two others.

“People are crammed together in dorm-style bunks, 60 people to a cell, without access to the basic things that we have on the outside. They have no hand sanitizer, no gloves, no ability to distance. On top of that, there are broken toilets and sinks, and dirty bathrooms with standing water,” Maya Ragsdale, a lawyer with Dream Defenders, said in a press release.

“We’re seeing throughout the country, from Chicago to New York City, that COVID-19 spreads like wildfire in jails. This is a ticking time bomb and officials in Miami must act now to release as many people as possible from cages.”

An initial hearing was held Monday afternoon in front of U.S. Judge Kathleen Williams. The lawsuit was filed Sunday on behalf of seven MetroWest inmates who lawyers say suffer from medical issues that make them particularly susceptible to the respiratory illness.

The Miami-Dade corrections department said Monday that the agency could not comment on a pending lawsuit.

Across South Florida, authorities have grappled with how to shield inmates — and the corrections officers who guard them in cramped jail and prison facilities — from the highly contagious coronavirus.

The Florida Department of Corrections, which houses inmates convicted of crimes and serving more than a year behind bars, revealed Sunday that two inmates have tested positive for COVID-19, the illness caused by the novel coronavirus. On Sunday evening, 26 prison staff and civilian contractors had tested positive, the department said.

Within the Miami-Dade County Corrections and Rehabilitation department, no inmates have tested positive for COVID-19, although only two had been tested.

One man, James Griffith, 19, who was released from MetroWest on Friday, told the Miami Herald: “Two officers told us, ‘Don’t believe what they’re telling ya’ll. The coronavirus is in here. Be safe. Wash your hands.”

Fifteen jail officers and civilian employees have contracted the virus, according to the department. As with first-responders across the nation, Miami-Dade jail officers have struggled to obtain enough masks, gloves and other equipment that might keep them safe from the virus. Officers have even resorted to making their own masks.

The Dream Defenders’ lawsuit, filed along with the Advancement Project National Office, Community Justice Project and Civil Rights Corps and GST LLP, said the department hasn’t done enough.

The groups’ press release quoted one of the plaintiffs, Anthony Swain, a 43-year-old with paraplegia and cystic myelomalacia and is being held at a medical unit at MetroWest. The facility houses over 1,800 inmates.

“I am trying my best to take care of myself in the midst of this pandemic, no different from you, no different from any other human being. But it’s impossible to do that at this jail. The cell is filthy and we have no access to hygiene products. Today [on April 3rd] I had to make a mask out of my yellow sock and an elastic string from my catheter bag. We are crowded together with no space between us,” Swain said, according to the press release.

In Miami-Dade, prosecutors, defense lawyers and judges have succeeded in trimming the jail population by about 600 inmates since the pandemic kicked into high gear last month. On Friday, there were about 3,400 inmates in three Miami-Dade jails. Just a few weeks ago, the number was about 4,000.

Also on Friday, the Miami-Dade judge overseeing the head of the criminal division ordered 18 inmates freed because their jail sentences were nearly complete. The order was done in conjunction with the Public Defender’s Office and Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office.

This story was originally published April 6, 2020 at 11:28 AM.