New York is the epicenter of the coronavirus outbreak in America and the nation watches to see the response in solidarity with that city and state but also to get a preview of what is coming for the rest of us.
New York Governor Cuomo announced the state is doing thousands of tests now after an enormous effort to get that system on track.
Trump has sent a hospital ship to help with the expected burden on its health care system.They are also retrofitting buildings as makeshift hospitals to help.
All good moves that will give confidence to the people. But this move by the mayor to release inmates may do the opposite.
From The New York Post:
Mayor Bill de Blasio plans to release “vulnerable” inmates from city jails to prevent the spread of the coronavirus pandemic into local lockups, he said Wednesday.
“In the next 48 hours, we will identify any inmates who need to be brought out because of either their own health conditions — if they have any pre-existing conditions, etc. — or because the charges were minor and we think it’s appropriate to bring them out in this context,” de Blasio said on WCBS radio Wednesday evening.
“That said, we still need our criminal justice system to function,” he added.
The announcement comes as a correction officer and an inmate both tested positive for the deadly illness in the past day.
The Correction Officers Benevolent Association union has called for new masks to protect its members and for all new detainees to be housed in facilities other than Rikers Island amid the outbreak.
Some city officials, including Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, have pushed for the city to begin releasing prisoners who are over 50 years old and at a low risk for reoffending.
