Rockovich

Rockovich

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With a rising inmate population and steady stream of new arrivals, the coronavirus remains a concern in Luzerne County’s prison system.

County Correctional Services Division Head Mark Rockovich reviewed his daily report Friday, which said there were 32 inmates with the coronavirus housed there and six employees in quarantine because they had tested positive.

“We are the front line. My officers are dealing with it every single day,” Rockovich said.

The prison performs a rapid COVID-19 test on incoming inmates at the time they are admitted, before they are in contact with others housed there, he said. Anyone testing positive or exhibiting symptoms is quarantined.

Rockovich has carved out four isolation areas — three for men and one for women.

“I need room to be able to separate people, and I don’t have it,” he said. “We’re doing what we can.”

Growing population

In March 2020, at the start of the pandemic, the average daily population was 668 at the prison and nearby Reichard Street minimum offenders building, also in Wilkes-Barre.

Attempting to free up space for quarantining in the prison, county attorneys and the court had launched an effort to release non-violent offenders with low-level charges, including nonpayment of child support and minor drug possession, officials said.

By June 2020, the average daily population was down to 383.

Around this time last year, the inmate count climbed to 479, and management announced some prison employees had tested positive. That prompted court officials to again start evaluating release options for inmates eligible for parole or awaiting trial for minor crimes.

In recent months, the total inmate population inched up again and reached 575 in September, with an average daily 452 at the prison and 123 at the minimum offenders building, Rockovich said.

Exacerbating the problem is the county prison’s housing of 61 inmates awaiting transfer to state prisons because their minimum incarceration is more than two years, he said.

The state is only allowing transfers from the county prison two days per month and has set limits on the number, he said.

“That’s 61 people in our prison system who could be at state facilities,” Rockovich said.

Precautions

All inmates receive cloth masks that they can wash, and disposable masks also are available for inmates when they must meet with attorneys or appear for court proceedings.

At least three times a day, all areas are sanitized, he said.

Vaccination continues to be offered to inmates.

In-person visits from family and friends remain off-limits. Instead, the prison implemented a program earlier this year allowing inmates to virtually visit others using tablets on docking stations. No taxpayer funds are involved in the project, and the prison has access to the live feeds for surveillance purposes.

Based on increased community spread, Rockovich said he will be changing policies on the number of inmates that can be transported together in the same vehicle by sheriff deputies for court appearances.

“We have to start initiating more of the policies that we had in 2020. We eased up on them when COVID cases weren’t that bad, but we’re back to a high rate of COVID cases in the county,” Rockovich said.

Staff pressure

While 369 inmates were released from the county prison system last month, another 349 new arrivals were booked, the monthly division report shows.

Prison workers must search incoming inmates for contraband and perform screenings, he said.

“We have to take them off the street,” Rockovich said. “We can’t phone this job in. It’s a hands-on job.”

The number of available correctional officers is down due to those on quarantine, which is “also taking a toll on staff,” he said.

If necessary, the prison gymnasium could be activated for COVID inmate housing or overflow because some of last year’s federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act funding was used to add heating and bathrooms to that space.

However, Rockovich said he views the gymnasium as a last-resort option because inmates housed there would not be sleeping in cells, and the general population would no longer have access to the gymnasium for exercise in inclement weather.

Reach Jennifer Learn-Andes at 570-991-6388 or on Twitter @TLJenLearnAndes.