3 More Lake County Inmates Test Positive For Coronavirus

WAUKEGAN, IL —Medical staff at Lake County jail have received the latest test results for nine detainees who were recently housed alongside a former inmate who tested positive for the new coronavirus. The results show that five of the inmates tested negative, three tested positive and one is pending, according to the Lake County Sheriff's Office.

Initially, the sheriff's office said there were ten inmates in the housing unit, 6T, with the former inmate who tested positive. On April 17, one of those inmates was released on bail, and was not displaying signs or symptoms of illness when discharged. No inmates have been moved into 6T or from 6T to other housing units within the jail.

Of the remaining nine inmates, the five who tested negative are being moved out of 6T to the 14-day new-inmate quarantine area. The three who tested positive will remain housed in 6T, along with the inmate whose test results have not returned, the sheriff's office said.

The four inmates remaining in 6T are in good overall conditions and are not displaying symptoms of illness, according to the sheriff's office. They will continue to be closely monitored by medical staff.

"The Lake County Jail continues following aggressive prevention and mitigation protocols. The sheriff’s administration is working closely with the Lake County Health Department and the jail’s medical provider in continued efforts to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in the Lake County jail," the sheriff's office said in a news release. "All of the jail’s inmates receive medical care and are routinely evaluated by medical staff while in custody at the Lake County Jail."

According to the sheriff's office, a number of protocols have been enacted since February to reduce the likelihood of COVID-19 entering the jail as well as enhanced mitigation procedures should inmates feel ill. These include:

• Enhanced medical screening for inmates and employees entering the jail
• Increased cleanings of jail pods
• Minimization of inmates moving from pod to pod
• Establishing a medical segregation area for inmates with mild illness symptoms
  • Any inmate experiencing illness wears a mask while quarantined
• Worked with Courts & criminal justice partners to establish electronic bond hearings, versus in-person hearings
  • Inmates who receive a recognizance bond at their initial hearing never enter the jail’s general population area•
• Utilizing PPEs for all jail staff
• Utilized vacant housing pods to spread the distance between inmates• All newly remanded inmates are housed out of general population for 14 days for medical evaluation before being moved to general population.

SEE ALSO:

• Released Lake County Jail Detainee Tests Positive For Coronavirus
• Pregnant Lake County Jail Inmate Tests Positive For Coronavirus

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