Groups Call for Measures to Reject Misinformation, Mitigate Risk, including Steps to Limit Unnecessary Detention, Release People Vulnerable to COVID-19, and Transparent Plans for Health and Safety in Places of Detention
Letter from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, School of Nursing, and School of Medicine Experts Detailing Risks for Detained Populations and Calling for Reduced Incarceration (March 25, 2020)
READ Letter
Letter from Maryland Public Health Experts Detailing Risks for Detained Populations and Calling for Reduced Incarceration (March 19, 2020)
Read Letter
Sign on to this letter seeking COVID-19 compassion for Marylanders in jails and prisons.
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BALTIMORE — Governor Larry Hogan should act to ensure that state and local agencies heed public health experts’ advice and take immediate steps to avoid a public health crisis in Maryland’s jails and prisons, wrote a coalition of groups and concerned individuals in a letter to the Governor today. In the letter, the coalition asks the Governor to take steps to ensure that system actors are responding to recommendations put forth by public health experts, specifically calling for limits on new admissions to jails and prison; the immediate release of people identified by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as vulnerable, as well as those currently in pretrial detention or with sentences that soon expire; and transparent and robust plans to ensure that people who remain in places of detention have access to basic necessities like soap, handsanitizer, and cleaning supplies, to prevent a public health crisis.
In the letter, the Coalition asks Governor Hogan for an Executive Order that includes the following urgent and necessary steps:
- Unequivocally rejects baseless claims that people are safer in jails and prisons than in the community.
- Urges all law enforcement and correctional agencies, state’s attorneys and members of the judiciary to take every step possible to avoid adding to the number of people incarcerated in any kind of detention and to expedite any steps to reduce the number of people, particularly those at risk of serious illness or death if they contract the virus.
- Orders the Maryland Parole Commission to expedite and expand release opportunities for those whose sentence will soon expire, those deemed able to safely return to the community, those serving short sentences, and those at greatest risk of serious illness.
- Authorizes Parole & Probation to limit required in-person contact and avoid incarceration for technical or minor violations.
- Utilizes the Governor’s clemency authority to release geriatric and other particularly vulnerable prisoners who present little to no risk to public safety and those slated to be released within two years.
- Requires every place of detention, whether operated by the State or not, and including those housing federal detainees to develop and implement health and safety plans and procedures ensuring that both detainees and staff have access to free cleaning supplies; that screening and medical care for those in custody; that people can communicate freely with the outside world; and do not rely on lengthy lockdowns.
- Orders the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services and the Department of Juvenile Services to take additional steps to provide greater transparency.
“Marylanders who are in detention have little to no control over who they are exposed to, the sanitation of their surroundings or access to medical care,” said Sonia Kumar, Senior Staff Attorney with the ACLU of Maryland. “It is in our collective interest to avoid the perfect storm for harm when the virus enters prisons and jails. Just as there are people particularly vulnerable to serious risk of harm from COVID-19 in the community, we have vulnerable people in our prisons and jails. We must protect them.”
Public health experts and groups such as Dr. Gregg Gonsalves, doctors working in New York City Hospitals, Dr. Marc Stern, Dr. Oluwadamilola T. Oladeru and Adam Beckman, Dr. Anne Spaulding, Homer Venters, and Josiah Rich have all clearly stated that preventing the harm inflicted by SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19 can become immensely more difficult for people involved in the criminal legal system. By following the recommendations outlined in the coalition’s letter, state and local officials can create a culture in which transparency, safety, and the health of all people is the paramount concern.
Organizational Signatories as of 3/19 at 5:30 pm:
ACLU of Maryland
ACLU of Maryland, Montgomery County Chapter
Adventist Prison & Health Reform Advocates Coalition
Aging People in Prison Human Rights Campaign
American Friends Service Committee
Baltimore County Justice Coalition
Baltimore Democratic Socialists of America
CASA
Congregation Action Network
Disability Rights Maryland
Grand Rapids Area Mutual Aid Network
GR Rapid Response to ICE
Indivisible Howard County
Interfaith Action for Human Rights
Jews United for Justice
Johns Hopkins University Sit-in
Law Enforcement Action Partnership
Lifer Family Support Network
Maryland Alliance for Justice Reform
Maryland CURE
Maryland Office of the Public Defender
Maryland Prisoners’ Rights Coalition
Maryland State Bar Association, Council for Correctional Reform
Montgomery County Democratic Socialists of America
Northwestern Prison Education Program
Organizing Black Inc.
Out for Justice, Inc.
Prison Health News
Project for Transgender Incarcerated Survivors
Public Justice Center
Reproductive Justice Inside
RISE Coalition of Western Maryland
Sex Workers Outreach Project - Baltimore
Showing Up for Racial Justice Baltimore
Together We Are Safe
University of Maryland Carey Immigration Clinic
University of Maryland School of Law Gender Violence Clinic
University of Maryland School of Law Gender Violence Clinic
Washington Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs
Youth, Education and Justice Clinic, University of Maryland Carey School of Law
Youth Empowered Society
Individual Signatories:
DaNia Henry, Georgetown University Law Center
Angela Mcknight
Alfred Chestnut
Lydia Watts, The Rebuild, Overcome, and Rise (ROAR) Center at UMB
Alec Konstantin
Abbe Smith, Professor of Law, Georgetown University
Jessica Poliarco
Juanita Corbett-Youngkin
Rev. Kobi Little, Justice Chapel
Warren Rymes
Mica McNair
Tomiko Shine
Amanda Collier
Rosa Collier
Stephanie Collier
Rob Van Someren Greve
Stanley Mitchell
Autumn Woodland
Donald P. Salzman
Jane C. Murphy, Laurence M. Katz Professor, University of Baltimore School of Law
Teruko Richardson
Kyle Long Bearfoot Farm
Madeline Becker
Andrew D. Freeman
Anneke Dunbar-Gronke
Elissa Laitin
Nickole Miller, Esq.
Merrick Black
Nicole McConlogue
Hassan Ahmad
Rabbi Ariana Katz
Carol Rice, Racial Justice Circle
Brianna Gordon
Bobbie Jo Torres
Kobie Flowers, Brown Goldstein Levy LLP
Laura Atwood
Monique Gaskins
Joseph Doukmetzian
Professor Allegra McLeod, Georgetown Law
Erin Bowman
Maneka Sinha, Director, Criminal Defense Clinic, University of Maryland School of Law
Kate Epstein
Jaime Lee, Assoc. Prof. of Law, Univ. of Baltimore (in my personal capacity)
Steve Ney
Carol Harding
Tim Rothermel
Anastasia W. Smith
Jennifer Soble, Illinois Prison Project
Maureen A. Sweeney, University of Maryland Carey Immigration Clinic
Professor Angela A. Allen-Bell (Affiliation only Director of Louis A. Berry Institute for
Civil Rights and Justice B. K. Agnihotri Endowed Professor Southern University Law
Center):
Seema Kakade, University of Maryland School of Law
Michael Millemann Professor, University of Maryland-Carey School of Law
Michael Gaskins
Veryl Pow, University of Baltimore School of Law
Ilana Newman
Dave Fell
Jessie Dunleavy
Shaun Rosenthal Sanford Heisler Sharp
Margaret Martin Barry, Visiting Professor of Law, American University Washington
College of Law
Lizzie Spradley
Alexandria Kirchhoff Corrie
Molly
Laura Grothaus
Brian Slocum
Jeremy Penn
Kathleen Hoke, Public Health Law Clinic at Maryland Carey Law
Angel Dawson
Anika Hamilton
Rachel Burris, LMSW
Maggie Ambrose
Jessica Handy, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Jess Nesbitt
Sara Gold, Medical-Legal Partnership Clinic, University of Maryland Carey School of
Law
Katharine Evans, LMSW
Maryland Plant-based Advocates Coalition - Jo Saint-George, Esq.
Eileen Benecke
Rev. Dr. Eliezer Valentin-Castanon, Trinity UMC
Jennifer Kirschner
Jessi Ahart - Communities United
Veronica Saltzman
Jenny Roberts, Professor of Law and Co-Director, Criminal Justice Clinic, American
University Washington College of Law
Savannah Fisher
Laurie Liskin
Kelci Reiss
Kristy Blalock, Gaudenzia Inc.
Keith Lucia
Delegate Nicole Williams
Lizzy Unger
Whitney Yang / US Human Rights Network
Eric E. Sterling, Executive Director, Criminal Justice Policy Foundation
Adjua Pryor - Georgetown University Law Student
Sarah Nesbitt
Rosalie Eck
Joe Thomas Georgetown Parity Project
Matthew Williams
Anne Sawyer
Kayla Tormohlen
Tiffany Williams
Shannon Mellott
Autumn Morrison
Perika Lancadter
Jessi Ahart - Communities United
Kizzy Diggs Dorsey Run Facility & Md Correctional Training Center
Mishawn
Charisse Lue
Susan A. Verbalis
Jia Ahmad, Policy Analyst, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health
Sachini Bandara Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Sally Dworak-Fisher, Baltimore City Resident
James Foulds, Assistant Professor of Information Systems, UMBC
Rabbi Simon Stratford, Congregation Kol Ami of Frederick
Susan Sheinfeld
Charelle Pelmore
Emily Blank
Tonya Pratt
Denise Brooks
Onyinye Alheri
Pearlie Barnes
Tifani Lively
Micah Pratt
Ishyne Pratt
Rabbi Simon Stratford, Congregation Kol Ami of Frederick
Marilyn Carlisle
Adrienne Potter Yoe
Lea Green,President of Marylandcure & Lea Green,mother of a Lifer
Hester Pack-Marylandcure
Noa Krawczyk
Michele Levy
Carolyn Cullison, On Our Own of St. Mary's Inc.
Hannah Mueller
Elli Bloomberg
Miner L Brown
marcia daniel - Baltimore Hebrew Congregation
Emily Blank
Deloris Gordon
Andrew J. Miller
Gwen L. DuBois MD, MPH Chesapeake Physicians for Social Responsibility
Laurel Hoa, Showing Up for Racial Justice - Montgomery County, MD
Arthur Milholland, M.D.
Amanda Latimore PhD, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Carly Wais
Maryjoel davis, second chance for women
Thomas McCarthy
Michael Gerlach
Ellen Weber Legal Action Center
Hannah Lin
Jeremy Gombin-Sperling Jews United for Justice
Jean Athey, Maryland Peace Action
Elizabeth Finne, Second Chance for Women
Beverly Winstead, University of Maryland, Carey School of Law
Desiree Tucker, Women Solve
Mark Wolff, JUFJ
Donna Palmer
Kitty Maynard, Kent and Queen Anne's Indivisible
Damien Haussling (Private Citizen)
Eva D Bankard
Charles James III
Blair Franklin, Executive Director, Youth Empowered Society - YES Drop In Center
Emma Richardson
Brigid Kenney
Valeska Populoh
Brian Francoise, Sister Neigborhood Arts Program (SNAP!)
Diane Martindale
Christopher Martindale
Jessica Emerson, The Human Trafficking Prevention Project at the University of
Baltimore School of Law
Lorraine Wilson
Booth M. Ripke, Nathans & Biddle LLP
Ashley Hufnagel
mardi hastings, Life After Release; Community Justice
Briana O'Neal
Debora Connolly
Caroline Herritt
Rae Hample
Liz Clayton Scofield
Eva Peskin
Beth Auguste
Adryan Corcione
Liz Ensz
Emma Jaster
Brienna Parsons
Arielle Gordon
Beyond Prisons
Halle
Adam Knapp
Ezra Lin
Amy Carpenter
Avi Zenilman
Toni Perry
Janeth Davidson
Anna Gallini
Ellis Maxwell, Rethink Incarceration
Juan Gutierrez
Ian Guthrie
Kevin Carason
James Collins
Tristan Band
Huey Hewitt, Direct Action Coordinating Committee (DACC)
Tristan Teale
Zach Styles
Gail Thomson
John LeGore
Grace Oppy
Chloe Danyo
Pnina
Alex Chao
cathy n
Kayla
Daniel Espo
Michelle Anderson
Jeremy Abramowitz
Philip Hannan III
Jared Wright
David Joseph
Harry Huckle
Carolina Villegas
Philip Alban
Brendan Raymond
Thomas
Zain Ahmed
George Inotowok
Juan Arbelaez
Cyerra Gage
Anna O'Brien
John Hernandez
Kushan Ratnayake
Astron Lockhart
Paul Hess
Sofia Di Gennaro
Gabrielle Dean
April oviedi
Tom Connolly
Katalina Khoury
Valerie Evans
Fallon Keavney
Rafael Ibay
Derresha
Natnael Bekele
Chris Carpenter
Melissa Bishop Prairie UU Church
Andrew Parsons
aran felice
Juel Johnson
Alex Jimenez
Rebecca Scarborough
Jonathan Feingold
Elizabeth Hazel
Anya Harjung
Magen Toole
Concerned Citizen
Amber
Timour Kamran
Catherine
Brady Pelkey
Brandi M Reed
Mark Sine
Stering
Clear
joseph ramey
Rodette Jones:United Workers
Alex Klinman
Grace Viscito
Devin Luqman, Esq., Managing Parter of Luqman Law
Juniper Morgan
Christina Asare
Jack Hsia
Sarah Bur, MPH, RN, CIC
Gary W. Gillespie
Jennifer Zito, representing The Maryland Alliance for Justice Reform (MAJR)
Kelly
Ashton Landes
Adrianna O'Brien
Chiara Longoni
Alyssa Glenn
Candice Smith
Nisha Foster
Caren Stewart
Michael Stewart
Kiara Streater
Ellis Hartridge
Julian Atta-Poku
Erin McIntosh, SWOP
Kimberly Haven
Iman Freeman, Baltimore Action Legal Team
Brittany Smith
Antonia Fasanelli, Homeless Persons Representation Project
Katie Collins-Ihrke Accessible Resources for Independence
Paul B DeWolfe, Office of the Public Defender
Dominique Conway AFSC-Friend of a Friend
Laurie Bezold
Marc Howard, Georgetown University Prisons and Justice Initiative
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