First Inmate At Suffolk County Jail Has Coronavirus: Sheriff

RIVERHEAD, NY — The first inmate, and a dozen Suffolk County correction officers, have tested positive for the new coronavirus, Sheriff Errol Toulon said.

This week, Toulon released information regarding the coronavirus pandemic and its effect on the Suffolk County Correctional Facility and deputy sheriff operations.

As of April 7, 12 Suffolk County Correction Officers have tested positive for COVID-19, along with one deputy sheriff, Toulon said. No sheriff’s office civilian staff have tested positive.

Toulon said late Wednesday night, an inmate at the Suffolk County Correctional Facility in Riverhead was displaying signs of illness and was sent to an area hospital for an evaluation.

At 11 p.m., hospital staff notified the Sheriff’s Office that the inmate had tested positive for coronavirus — the first case of an inmate diagnosed with coronavirus at the Suffolk County Correctional Facility.

Suffolk County Health Department medical staff and correction officers will continue to follow all necessary health and safety protocols to further contain the spread of coronavirus. Any inmates that were in the same housing area with this individual have been transferred to another housing area where they will be evaluated 3-4 times a day by jail medical st

Most of the 12 correction officers, Toulon said, "were working in areas with minimal contact with county inmates."

Toulon said he began implementing "stringent" procedures in the first week of March to create physical distance between incoming inmates and the general jail population. All inmates are housed in a reception area for 14 days upon entry into the jail and consistently monitored for the signs of illness; they are also given appropriate cleaning supplies, he said.

On March 17, all in-person visitation to the facility was canceled, and ramped-up precautions were phased in during subsequent weeks, Toulon said. All correction officers are required to wear appropriate personal protection equipment and have their temperature taken before entering the facility; deputy sheriffs are also required to wear PPE.

“I have learned in my experience how quickly infectious disease can make its way through the correctional system," Toulon said on LI News Radio. "It is my goal to implement as many protections to keep our staff and inmates as safe as possible. Our officers are on the front lines of this pandemic and I couldn’t be more pleased with how diligent they are about following safety protocols for everyone’s protection. We have a long way to go with this pandemic, but we are doing very well under these very stressful and difficult circumstances.”