10 Tuolumne County Jail Inmates Released Early To Reduce Population Amid Coronavirus Outbreak
TUOLUMNE COUNTY (CBS13) – The Tuolumne County Sheriff's Office said they released nearly a dozen inmates to reduce the jail's population amid the coronavirus outbreak and to create isolation cells for potential COVID-19 patients.
The Tuolumne County Jail can house up to 149 inmates but currently has a population of 123 after the sheriff's office said they released 10 inmates on Wednesday who were within 14 days of completing their sentence, do not pose a threat to the public and were not jailed for violent crimes.
"Due to the early releases, our jail has been able to free up two cells which will be designated for isolation in the event of a positive Covid-19 case within our inmate population," the sheriff's office said in a Facebook post.
Officials said the jail's population, which contains several individuals aged 65 and up, and staff are being checked by nursing staff twice daily.
The sheriff's office said they were already taking precautionary measures before the inmates' early release such as disinfecting common areas twice daily and disinfecting cells daily.
