Coronavirus Is Terrifying NJ Halfway Houses, Family Members Say

NEWARK, NJ — When Gee Santiago’s husband first entered Tully House, a halfway house in Newark, he used to call her three or four times a day. But since the coronavirus hit New Jersey, she only hears from him once a week – if that.

And now she’s worried for his life.

Santiago, a Burlington resident, is among thousands of people with a loved one living in a New Jersey residential community release program (RCRP) facility, otherwise known as a “halfway house.”

The facilities are supposed to be a place where prison inmates nearing the end of their sentences can find work, get help with substance abuse and rally hope for a successful reentry. But lately, they've become pits of despair due to the COVID-19 crisis, some say.

READ MORE: NJ Coronavirus Updates (Here's What You Need To Know)

For inmates like Santiago’s husband, who has chronic issues with his spine, prostate and degenerative disc disease, living in terror has become the new normal, she told Patch.

“My husband is afraid to let them know if he’s in pain due to the facility sending him back to prison,” Santiago alleged. “He has informed me that the place is filthy, and the staff aren’t taking any precautions to make sure the residents are safe.”

“They only have one wall hand sanitizer on each floor for everyone to use,” she charged. “They are not given any gloves or masks, and are subjected to being in a room with other residents who are coughing and are very ill, placing them in a very harmful situation.”

“Some of the residents are sick, but are too afraid to inform staff for fear of being sent back to prison,” she continued. “No one deserves to suffer in silence.”

Some inmates at Tully House have managed to get their stories out to the public – albeit anonymously. “They have kitchen workers who are handling the food, they’re not being provided with masks,” an unnamed source told NJTV News last week. “They’re turning beard guards into face masks.”

But their family members haven’t been shy about speaking up.

Last month, Evelin White, a 31-year-old Paterson resident, reached out to Patch with a message of concern for her husband, a "hardworking family man" who is serving time at Tully House until at least July due to a parole violation.

"He's kind, compassionate, honest and wants nothing more than to be home with his loved ones," White said.

But according to White, the facility isn't taking proper precautions when it comes to protecting residents from COVID-19. The alleged issues include forcing them to attend programs with dozens of other residents packed into one room, with "half of them coughing."

• See related article: Wife Fears For Husband In Newark Halfway House Amid Coronavirus

Since she first reached out to Patch in March, White said the situation has only gotten worse at Tully House, which is overseen by the DOC and managed by a pair of private corporations: Education & Health Centers of America Inc. and the GEO Group.

Although DOC officials say there have been no confirmed cases of COVID-19 among inmates at Tully House as of Wednesday – and only five at any of its facilities throughout the state – White has insisted the crisis is worse than they're letting on.

According to her husband, a hacking, feverish resident of Tully House was taken out of the building to an "undisclosed location" last week when he couldn't breathe or walk.

"My husband said they didn't sanitize the room he was in or anything he touched," White claimed.

Over the past weeks, a wave of other frightened relatives of halfway house residents have reached out to Patch with concerns about Tully House, which currently has 329 inmates, Harbor House in Newark, which has 248 inmates, and others throughout the state.

After White shared her story, dozens of readers left similar comments on our article.

“My brother is in [Harbor House] in Newark and exactly what this woman told Patch is 100 percent the same thing my brother told me,” one person wrote.

“He said [there is] ‘no social distancing,’” they continued. “He said [they’re] handed papers to sign that they don’t have symptoms, and that they haven’t been around anyone with corona. I told him he shouldn’t sign. How would he know if he was around someone with corona? He doesn’t know. Also, he’s got like 20 guys in his room. No hand sanitizer or cleaning supplies and no visits with family. My brothers been away already four years. He’s almost done with his time and leaves on parole, so regardless, I would think these men would be released to family because most have served state prison sentences and are on [their] way home soon anyway.”

“My fiancé is in the Harbor House at 300 Frelinghuysen Avenue in Newark, and the conditions in this facility are not getting any better,” another family member reported. “Only staff have the proper PPE to keep themselves safe from COVID-19. These men are not safe, these conditions are not safe, and something has to be done. Some of these men have less than five months left in these halfway house facilities, not just The Harbor. These men are humans, and rules should apply to [their] situation as well, but these places are overcrowded.”

Maria Carrasquillo of Clifton, who has a family member at Tully House, called the facility a “rat hole.”

While staff members get personal protective equipment, the inmates “aren’t being protected in any way shape or form,” Carrasquillo said.

“I’ve seen firsthand how these men are treated; it’s disgraceful to say the least,” Carrasquillo claimed. “I’m worrying myself sick about my husband.”

“I know of animal shelters that take better care of dogs and cats,” she said.

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN SOMEONE TESTS POSITIVE?

There are about 2,200 people living in halfway houses across New Jersey. But as of Tuesday – despite an order from Gov. Phil Murphy that grants medically vulnerable state inmates their temporary release – none have been sent home, state officials say.

“We’re still aggregating the data for eligible individuals,” a spokesperson with the New Jersey Department of Corrections (DOC) said.

As of Wednesday evening, there were five confirmed cases of COVID-19 among inmates at New Jersey’s halfway houses. No residents have died, according to the DOC website.

According to the DOC, several measures have been rolled out to mitigate the spread of the virus at the state’s RCRP facilities. They include:

• Enhanced sanitization across halfway houses and fleet
• Increased access to hand sanitizer for staff and soap for inmates, while also educating residents on all CDC guidance on mitigating the spread of germs
• Health screenings for all those entering the halfway houses that includes temperature scans twice daily
• Requiring all who enter to wear surgical masks
• Suspending large group events and ensuring smaller activities are aligned with social distancing guidance
• Temporarily suspending visitations, while offering other forms of communication such as telephone calls and access to U.S. mail postage, free of charge, to maintain ties to loved ones
• Advanced preparation for medical quarantines and medical isolation as medically prescribed
• Suspending work programs until further notice
• Suspending all transfers of inmates from NJDOC facilities to RCRP Assessment Centers and from RCRP Assessment Centers to other RCRP facilities
• Analyzing each RCRP return to ensure only those returns that are deemed crucial are being returned to an NJDOC facility
• Requiring approved returns to be medically quarantined at the NJDOC regional facility for a 14-day period from the date of transport to ensure no signs of COVID-19 or other illness are present
• Housing RCRP inmates returned for serious disciplinary infractions at the regional facility with their respective court line process

If an employee at a halfway house tests positive for the coronavirus, they will be instructed to self-quarantine or self-isolate at home, DOC officials say.

“The facility staff will notify all employees who have been in contact with the confirmed [cases] so that they can self-quarantine, as directed by the New Jersey Department of Health,” the DOC states. “The department would also quarantine inmates that have been in contact with the individual on-site.”

What happens when an inmate at a halfway house gets sick? According to the DOC:

MEDICAL ASSESSMENT - “If an inmate either exhibits signs of illness or seeks medical assistance, the RCRP staff will contact medical staff at the regional prison institution via phone to determine if an in-person assessment is needed. If medical staff determines that an in-person evaluation is not needed, the inmate patient will be provided medical education through the regional institution’s registered nurse via phone. If medical staff determines that an in-person evaluation is needed, the inmate patient will be brought to the regional facility, and assessed in a pre-determined area so as to not mix with any other inmate patients and/or staff.”

ISOLATION – “Inmate patients presenting with mild upper respiratory symptoms are evaluated by medical staff and placed in medical isolation units in the facility. These inmates may be released from medical isolation seven days from the onset of symptoms and at least three days after the resolution of fever and significant improvement in symptoms. Inmate patients in the isolation unit must wear surgical masks for movements in and out of the unit. The staff, both medical and custody, must wear full PPE in and out of the isolation unit.”

HOSPITAL VISIT – “Inmate patients presenting with flu-like symptoms and/or COVID-19 symptoms shall be evaluated by medical staff and directed to the hospital if they exhibit fever/cough/shortness of breath. The inmate patient will be evaluated by the hospital, medically isolated, and provided a COVID-19 test. Inmate patients may be discharged if the COVID-19 test is negative, and the inmate patient is medically cleared to return to the facility. Inmates released from the hospital are admitted to infirmary level care at the facility, until released by medical staff. Inmates admitted to the infirmary are monitored for co-morbid conditions as they recover from their illness. Staff having contact with the inmate in the infirmary shall wear full PPE equipment.”

QUARANTINE – “Inmates with known exposure to COVID-19 shall be quarantined in a specifically designated quarantine unit within the facility. The inmates shall be monitored by medical staff. If the inmate becomes symptomatic during this 14-day quarantine period, they will be evaluated for medical isolation or referred to a hospital for evaluation and testing.”

When asked to comment about what Tully House, Harbor House and other halfway houses are doing to combat the spread of the virus, DOC spokespeople offered the following reply:

“In terms of our protocols, they are all outlined in the FAQ’s you referenced... Some of those protocols include ensuring all RCRP staff undergo a health assessment that includes a temperature scan and provided surgical masks, and gloves. Increased sanitization and the availability of sanitization products. All RCRP inmates are required to be screened twice daily. The NJDOC audits screenings to ensure compliance. Suspension or modification of group gatherings to accommodate for social distancing guidance. Suspension of work details. If someone has been in contact with a confirmed case at an RCRP level, they will be quarantined to their living quarters, not necessarily the jails, and if there is an inmate presenting illness, or who reports illness, they will be put in contact with NJDOC medical team at the regional facility and will be triaged by phone in accordance with Department of Health guidance. If medical staff determine an in-person assessment is needed the inmate patient will be transferred to a regional prison and assessed in a pre-determined location so as to not mix with other inmate patients or staff. The medical team will determine next steps and if hospitalization or temporary medical isolation at the regional facility is warranted. Inmate patients and transporting staff are required to wear appropriate [personal protective equipment].”

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