Corrections_Today_September_October_2021_Vol.83_No.5

NIJ Update

Research and evaluation questions raised

COVID–19 led to a 25% drop in per- sons detained in local jails. In fact, the jail incarceration rate at midyear 2020 (167 inmates per 100,000 U.S. residents) was at the lowest level since 1990.

11% of those tests were positive. During this same period, approxi- mately 8% of jail staff working in counties with the highest infection rates tested positive for COVID–19. In comparison, 1% of jail staff in counties with the lowest infection rates tested positive. 14 For jails reporting information on deaths from COVID–19 (841 report- ing units), 43 people incarcerated in 22 jails died between March and June 2020. 15 33 of those deaths were reported as confirmed deaths from COVID–19 or as cases in which COVID–19 was a significant con - tributor to the death. The remaining 10 deaths were reported as suspected deaths from the virus. A total of 40 staff from 30 jails also died of COVID–19 between March and June 2020. 32 of those deaths were reported as confirmed deaths from COVID–19. The other eight deaths were reported as suspected deaths from COVID–19. The BJS data collection is the first of its kind to provide data on the impact of COVID–19 on local jails in the United States. Though the time frame for the findings is short, the data highlight how COVID–19 led to significant changes in jail popula - tions and operations. In the future, jail administrators will be able to glean whether these changes are sus- tainable and which practices, if any, can lead to continued declines in jail populations. Conclusion The impacts of the COVID–19 pandemic will be felt for years to come. As with the changes seen in state sentencing practices, 16 how- ever, it is unclear what they will be,

Research questions that would greatly benefit all stakeholders include: 12 –– Are virtual models as effective as in-person supervision, coun- seling, and treatment? –– Has the digital divide across different parts of the community corrections system affected the ability to continue operations during the pandemic? If so, in what ways? –– How has the reduction in drug testing and electronic supervi- sion affected outcomes? –– What are the net savings for community supervision agen- cies that implement virtual models? –– How can changes made in response to the pandemic be distinguished from reforms already taking place? Taken together, these initial observations from the institutional and community corrections work- shops offer actionable guidance to agencies navigating the impacts of COVID–19. The impact of COVID–19 on local jail populations Although the pandemic tremen- dously stressed the nation’s criminal justice system, it also significantly changed local jail systems. From June 30, 2019 to June 30, 2020, local jails experienced a large, 185,400-person reduction in their confined population, according to the 2021 BJS report on the impact of COVID–19 on local jail popu- lations. 13 In more general terms,

Though the time frame for the findings is short, the data highlight how COVID–19 led to significant changes in jail populations and operations.

Jail systems began to see reduc- tions in their inmate populations as early as March 2020, and the trend continued in subsequent months. De- clining admissions to jails, coupled with the expedited release of 208,500 individuals from jails between March and June 2020, resulted in less crowded facilities. By midyear 2020, occupied beds were down to 60% of capacity, compared to 81% at midyear 2019. Jails across the country admin- istered 215,360 COVID–19 tests to incarcerated persons during the four- month period of March through June 2020, which equated to testing 9% of the 2.4 million individuals admitted to jails during that time. More than

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