This testimony was a declaration from the May 7, 2020 filing of a new class action lawsuit over jail conditions related to COVID-19 on behalf of prisoners at Santa Rita Jail against the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office.
I am currently an inmate in Santa Rita Jail, the County Jail for Alameda County, BAK513, Housing Unit (HU) 6, Pod D. Where I am housed is dirty. The ventilation is terrible in my unit. The vents are clogged up with dust, making it difficult for folks with asthma and bronchitis. I believe that both the vents and carpet are supposed to be cleaned every 6 months, but that it seems they haven’t been cleaned in a couple years. The day room carpet has food and blood stains.
On the news, the Jail tells the public one way that the Jail is handling COVID-19. When my family calls, they think everything is being handled well there based on what they hear in the news, but I have to tell them that that’s not the case. I think that Sgt. Kelly, the spokesperson for the Sheriff, is distributing false information, at least considering the conditions my unit is under right now.
Many deputies are often not wearing their masks. When inmates tell them they’re supposed to have masks on when distributing food or laundry, deputies just ignore them. Inmates get disposable masks “once in a blue moon” (not even weekly, maybe once a month) so far. There is a general lack of respect from staff. When deputies hand out soap or cleaning supplies, there is always a rude remark, such as “you guys can’t make your own sanitizer?” Technician White continually refuses to answer inmate questions and exhibits very little professionalism.
On the news, the Jail tells the public one way that the Jail is handling COVID-19. When my family calls, they think everything is being handled well there based on what they hear in the news, but I have to tell them that that’s not the case. I think that Sgt. Kelly, the spokesperson for the Sheriff, is distributing false information, at least considering the conditions my unit is under right now.
Although staff is supposed to give out cleaning supplies twice a day, they sometimes skip a whole day. Lately, they’ve been passing out bars of soap every so often (not even every day), but one bar is shared between two cellmates. My pod (D pod) is not quarantined but C pod next door is (I think it is yellow tagged). Even though C Pod is yellow tagged, not much has changed — we’re still eating with everyone else and a few new inmates have come into my pod too. During split tier pod time, staying 6 feet away from everyone is not possible.
During pod time, if anyone in my pod has to go to the bathroom, they are forced to urinate in the pod shower, as deputies lock the cell doors, which have the toilets. This has always been the case and creates highly unsanitary showers — someone even defecated in the shower back when I was in HU7. Otherwise, if someone has to go the restroom, they just have to hold it.
On April 17, 2020, the jail staff told my entire pod, that we have to put all our property in a plastic bag and the staff would take it away until tomorrow so that the pod could be professionally cleaned. When I asked Sergeant Gilbertson to see an official document from the Health Department demanding that a cleaning service be hired, Gilbertson threatened that I would go to the hole if I continued to ask.
On April 18, 2020, my housing unit was sent outside to have supervised showers in a trailer while people came to clean our unit. I am frustrated by this experience, which I believe accomplished very little, and I believe largely served the purpose of providing positive publicity for the jail so they can claim they hired professional cleaners. When my pod went to the outdoor showers, we received antibacterial soap and new masks, but deputies told us to throw the masks away after we used them, and that we should also put our soaps in a box (we were not allowed to take them back to our cells).
During pod time, if anyone in my pod has to go to the bathroom, they are forced to urinate in the pod shower, as deputies lock the cell doors, which have the toilets. This has always been the case and creates highly unsanitary showers — someone even defecated in the shower back when I was in HU7. Otherwise, if someone has to go the restroom, they just have to hold it.
When we returned from the outdoor showers on April 18, 2020, I noticed that the day room still appeared dirty and dusty. The vents still had dust in them and the carpet appeared to have the same stains — everything looked and smelled the same. My cell floor even had dirty footprints on it when I returned. The pod showers still smelled strongly of urine — they had still not been cleaned since the previous Wednesday. Deputies had told inmates that the cleaning squad would deep clean the unit using power washers and that our entire cells would be sanitized and sprayed down. It was clear to me this did not happen.
Deputy Caron and Deputy Wilson sometimes do not wear their masks. Deputy Wilson’s mask was off all day Sunday, April 19, 2020. C pod next door is still under yellow-tagged quarantine, but deputies continue to walk through the door straight from C pod into D pod even though they have the option to go around. I fear this creates a greater likelihood of deputies spreading COVID-19 to my pod. I am also concerned because I heard Deputy Caron say that one person in C pod now has tested positive for COVID-19. The news I have heard that several deputies have tested positive for COVID-19 also concerns me, especially considering many deputies do not wear their masks.
On April 20, 2020, the top tier of my pod received soap and new masks but my tier (the bottom tier) did not. I have not seen hand sanitizing wipes in almost two weeks. Jail staff have told us that we are supposed to receive cleaning supplies twice a day. However, sometimes we go one or more days without receiving cleaning supplies. For example, we recently went four days (April 16, 2020 to April 20, 2020) without receiving cleaning supplies. When we do receive cleaning supplies, we receive a watered down sanitizer solution bottle that doesn’t smell like anything. We do not receive rags or towels. We have to use our own materials (clothing, linens, etc.) as rags. There is a single mop and mop bucket that is passed around all of the cells in our pod. When it is my turn to mop my cell, the mop head appears dirty and the mop water appears dirty and dark. The broom also appears dirty, and I often fear I’m simply spreading more bacteria from other people’s floors into my own cell when I use these supplies, especially since inmates use these supplies in the restroom area (which contains a toilet and sink) of their cells as well. The toilet brush we receive to clean our cell toilet is not sterilized or cleaned, and it sits out next to our food sometimes. There is no toilet bowl cleaner. Inmates often use their own body soap to clean the cell due to insufficient cleaning supplies. On April 20, 2020, the only supplies we received were a broom without the handle (just the bristles part) and a toilet brush. When we asked Deputy Whitlock for better supplies and a proper broom, he responded that we could “sweep on our knees” and did not provide us with additional supplies. They gave us the same supplies (toilet brush and broken broom) today, April 21, 2020, and Deputy Whitlock gave us the same response when we requested additional supplies.
Inmates often use their own body soap to clean the cell due to insufficient cleaning supplies. On April 20, 2020, the only supplies we received were a broom without the handle (just the bristles part) and a toilet brush. When we asked Deputy Whitlock for better supplies and a proper broom, he responded that we could “sweep on our knees” and did not provide us with additional supplies.
Inmate Leonard Wakefield tested positive for COVID-19. Wakefield used to be housed in Housing Unit (HU) 7, but he went to HU8 while he was fighting the virus, and then he was moved to HU6, D pod, right next to my cell. Wakefield is in a cell by himself now in HU6, but since he was only in HU8 for less than a week, I am was concerned Wakefield might still be contagious and I don’t understand why he wasn’t still isn’t quarantined or at least why he didn’t go back to HU7 where he came from (I have heard HU7 is also quarantined).
Around 5 minutes to midnight on April 21, 2020, a couple days after my initial exposure to Leonard Wakefield, I was finally taken to a medical visit, as I has begun to develop various symptoms such as chills, a sore throat, an itchy throat, itchy eyes, and tightness in my chest. The medical staff gave me some pain pills that night and gave me some cough drops the next day. I didn’t have a fever, but considering my symptoms and exposure to Wakefield, I asked the medical staff if I could please be tested for COVID-19. From what Wakefield told me about his experience with the virus, my symptoms seemed similar. Wakefield also sometimes did not wear his mask when he was in close proximity to me, causing me to fear even more that I caught the virus. However, medical staff did not test me and sent me back to my cell after my visit.
By April 27, 2020, I remained sick with similar symptoms. My chills persisted even when I was fully clothed and wearing thermals. I developed migraine headaches and had been vomiting the past couple days. The nurse continued to monitor my temperature but because I still hadn’t developed a fever, medical staff refused to test me for COVID-19. I have been given some throat lozenges, Mucinex, and Tylenol, but I continued to submit sick call requests daily to be tested for COVID-19. I had also begun to develop strange cardiac symptoms at this point — it feels as if my heartbeat is irregular. When I described these symptoms to the nurse, she agreed they seemed concerning. At this point, I began to submit sick call slips to have this cardiac issue looked at as well.
By April 27, 2020, I remained sick with similar symptoms. My chills persisted even when I was fully clothed and wearing thermals. I developed migraine headaches and had been vomiting the past couple days. The nurse continued to monitor my temperature but because I still hadn’t developed a fever, medical staff refused to test me for COVID-19.
On May 1, 2020 and May 4, 2020, the jail implemented concerning waiting room practices that made social distancing either difficult or impossible. When I was called to appear for video court on May 1, 2020, I had to wait in a filthy holding tank for approximately 10 hours (from 7 a.m. until 5 p.m.). The tank appeared to have urine stains on the floors, brown stains on the walls, and other ambiguous stains on the walls, benches, floor, and doors. Because I found the sanitation level of the tank to be so terrible, I stood the entire time so I wouldn’t have to sit on the benches. The tank was about 8 by 6 feet, and there were up to five other inmates in there with me at a time. Another tank close by was the same size and had seven or eight people in there together.
On May 4, 2020, I was called in for a medical appointment, as at this point I was still experiencing chills, shortness of breath, and my cardiac symptoms. While waiting for my appointment, the deputies placed me in another small tank, about 6 by 8 feet again, with four other inmates, in which we were unable to stay six feet away from each other again. When I mentioned to a deputy that I wanted to keep a 6 feet distance away from others while I waited, the deputy told me that if I didn’t want to sit in that tank, I could go back to my Housing Unit. Therefore, fearing for my safety, I returned to my housing unit and thus was unable to see the medic. I sacrificed my opportunity to see the medic for fear of either infecting others with the virus if I already had it or becoming infected with the virus if I did not already have it, as I know that forgoing social distancing protocol increases the likelihood of spreading the virus. Thus, I fear that the continued and general lack of prioritization of social distancing is contributing to further spread of the virus all throughout the jail. To provide a final example of this, an inmate who tested positive for COVID-19 was recently brought to our housing unit. Although there were three unoccupied cells at the time in our pod, the deputies placed this inmate in an already occupied cell so that he would have cellmate. I fear this caused the COVID-19 patient to spread the virus to his new cellmate.
When I mentioned to a deputy that I wanted to keep a 6 feet distance away from others while I waited, the deputy told me that if I didn’t want to sit in that tank, I could go back to my Housing Unit. Therefore, fearing for my safety, I returned to my housing unit and thus was unable to see the medic. I sacrificed my opportunity to see the medic for fear of either infecting others with the virus if I already had it or becoming infected with the virus if I did not already have it, as I know that forgoing social distancing protocol increases the likelihood of spreading the virus.
We continue to receive the same aforementioned inadequate cleaning supplies with no improvements. About a week ago, staff finally handed out soap and hand wipes, but I haven’t seen any since. I continue to notice deputies and sergeants walking around and talking in close proximity to inmates without wearing masks. I fear all these practices are further contributing to the spread of the virus in the jail.
As of May 6, 2020, I was experiencing severe chest pain and numbness in my arm. I have been requesting medical attention for my cardiac symptoms and to be tested for corona virus for two weeks as of this date.