The Daviess County Detention Center is currently housing a historically low number of inmates, largely due to actions taken in response to COVID-19.
The low numbers are due to Gov. Andy Beshear’s releasing a number of inmates meeting specific criteria across the state, as well as the court system taking extra precautions about the number of people they are putting in jail right now.
Jailer Art Maglinger said DCDC had 474 inmates earlier this week. On average, that number falls around 730. The highest number of inmates Maglinger has seen at DCDC was 801, while the current number of inmates is the lowest he’s witnessed.
“The number of state inmates has dropped drastically over the last couple of months,” Maglinger said.
The jail took in 38 inmates May 1-7, Maglinger said, averaging about five per day. That’s a major decrease from the 20 inmates a day the jail usually processes.
Beshear has called for two different inmate releases across the Commonwealth since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The first round of releases was based on those with non-violent, non-sexual offenses, and the second round focused on releasing those who were “medically fragile” and more susceptible to contracting the coronavirus.
At DCDC, 30 total inmates have been released, including 23 state inmates who were released during the first round.
“These guys were within six months of their eligibility date to be released,” Maglinger said. “They were all non-violent, non-sexual offenders.”
Seven inmates were considered medically fragile enough to be released during the second round. The jail’s administrative nurse developed the list of those considered susceptible, including four who were high-risk for the virus.
On top of the early releases, Maglinger said the Daviess County District, Family and Circuit courts have been selective about who they send to jail in order to prevent an outbreak from occurring. Jails are more susceptible to becoming COVID-19 hotspots than prisons, Maglinger said, because they are constantly taking people in off the street, whereas prison inmates stay in place for longer periods of time.
These low numbers have been somewhat relieving for the staff at DCDC. Communication between inmates and staff has improved, as well as the overall morale.
“Corrections is unique — normally it’s go, go, go,” Maglinger said. “This has really helped the staff band together as a team. It’s kind of a scary thing when you’re taking people in, and anybody could be a carrier. There’s been that extra hazard because of COVID-19. At first, when all the staff and inmates we were taking in were wearing masks, it kind of scared the [rest of the inmates] and made them nervous. Since then, we’ve really tried to work on inmate communication, and I think it’s really helped.”
This low inmate population won’t last forever, Maglinger said, and the staff at DCDC are anticipating a spike in the jail’s population in the months to come. But, right now, everyone is feeling fortunate.
Maglinger is also encouraged that DCDC hasn’t seen an uptick in cases. One deputy tested positive at the jail and came back to work on May 1 after recovering. COVID-19 tests were performed on 15 staff members who’d been in close contact with that deputy, and all tested negative, Maglinger said.
“We’ve been very fortunate here.”
—–
Click here for all of our coronavirus coverage.
The Owensboro Health coronavirus hotline is available 24/7 by calling 877-888-6647. Call the hotline before seeking in-person care. More information from OH can be found here.
For the latest information and data on COVID-19 in Kentucky visit kycovid19.ky.gov or dial the Kentucky state hotline at 800-722-5725.
For the latest health guidelines and resources from the CDC, visit their website here.
