Court Orders FCI Danbury To Identify The Virus Vulnerable

DANBURY - A federal court has ordered officials at the Federal Correctional Institution in Danbury to identify inmates with health conditions that may put them at risk of the new coronavirus.

The order follows a class-action lawsuit filed Apr. 27 by FCI Danbury inmates. That suit demanded the transfer of the "most medically vulnerable individuals to home confinement or other appropriate settings." It also requested the implementation of social distancing protocols and hygiene measures "essential to lowering the risk of the disease and of death." The suit identified four incarcerated plaintiffs, aged fifty years and over, alleged to have underlying medical conditions that place them at risk of death should they contract COVID-19.

The federal court is requiring FCI Danbury to provide a list of its "medically vulnerable inmates" whom they define as aged 65 or older and/or possess any of the symptoms identified by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicating they are at a higher risk for severe illness from COVID-19. The facility was given three days to complete that task, along with providing a list of inmates who are requesting home confinement.

Within 13 days, FCI Danbury's warden must provide the court with the details of which inmates have been approved for home confinement, and have placed those inmates into a 14-day quarantine within the facility. If any inmate requesting home confinement has been denied, the warden must detail to the court an explanation why.

The court set May 26 for a conference to determine whether the order should be extended.