California sheriff says inmates tried to infect themselves
LOS ANGELES — Two groups of inmates at a Los Angeles County jail tried to infect themselves with the coronavirus by sharing water and a mask, and within two weeks 30 prisoners tested positive, authorities said Monday.
Sheriff Alex Villanueva at a briefing showed surveillance videos from two dormitory units at the North County Correctional Facility in Castaic.
The footage captured inmates in one unit sharing a container of hot water and others in a second unit sniffing a mask.
Two of the 30 inmates, one from each unit, were later released from the jail as part of the department’s effort to reduce the prisoner population systemwide, according to Bruce Chase, the department’s assistant sheriff of custody operations.