Misty Thomas: COVID-19 is exposing chronic problems with DC’s criminal justice system but also pathways to permanent reforms
It is heartbreaking — and perhaps unsurprising — that the rate of confirmed COVID-19 cases is now 16 times higher for people incarcerated in DC’s jails than in the general District population. That disparity is not acceptable and not reflective of our values as residents of the nation’s capital.
This disturbing statistic hits especially close to home for members of the District Task Force on Jails & Justice, a group of advocates, returning citizens and government leaders from a cross-section of the criminal justice system who have been working together to redefine our local approach to incarceration. Two task force members have recently tested positive for the virus: one is a correctional officer and the other is a young man currently incarcerated at the DC Jail.
Sadly, the pandemic is bringing the long-standing inequities and community safety challenges examined by the task force to the forefront. The issues DC is grappling with now — under-investment in communities most in need of resources, over-incarceration, a lack of local control over our justice system, and inadequate jail facilities — are not new. Rather, these structural issues are amplified and exacerbated by the crisis.
The task force was established to critically think through these issues with input from all affected stakeholders, develop solutions, and ultimately shape the future of corrections in the District. The devastating consequences of COVID-19 are highlighting the need for systemic change, and the District government’s recent responses related to arrests, incarcerations and public health are proving that change is possible. Clearly, we have the imagination, tools and political will to invest in communities, decarcerate, and make our detention facilities safer for everyone who lives and works within them.
In 2019, the task force recommended that DC reduce the number of people we incarcerate and for how long, emphasizing that incarceration “should be used only when a person poses a specific risk … that no community-based resource can mitigate.” In the midst of this pandemic, the District has managed to reduce its jail population by 22%, driven by the need to prevent the spread of disease in a crumbling facility. If a population reduction can happen successfully under such trying circumstances, we can certainly work now to make many of these practices permanent.
Community-based organizations working overtime to support DC’s returning citizens are seeing an even greater need for sanitization equipment, toiletries, clothing, housing and income support for the people newly released each day. The task force recommended that the District increase funding for programs designed to use public health strategies in crisis intervention and that it support the successful reentry of people returning home from prison and jail.
Finally, this pandemic has highlighted how little control DC voters have over their own justice system. Incarcerated DC residents must take their requests for parole, clemency and compassionate release to federal officials. People convicted of felonies serve their time in federal prisons scattered around the country, far from home. Our men’s halfway house operates on a federal contract, and the District had no power to stop its abrupt closure this month, leaving more than 150 men scrambling for housing during this crisis. These are all reasons why the task force recommends that DC take action to resume control of parole; demand a new, high-quality halfway house provider; and ultimately bring home its residents serving prison sentences to facilities managed by the District. Only with more control over its justice system will the District be able to respond adequately in times of crisis.
The current situation is dire, and the District must act quickly to better protect those who are detained or who work in the jail. This unprecedented crisis has shown us that we can find common ground on reforms — and that lasting, systemic change is not only possible, but necessary.
Misty Thomas is the executive director of the Council for Court Excellence (CCE), a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that works on criminal, civil and juvenile justice issues and justice education in the city. CCE facilitates the District Task Force on Jails & Justice.
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The District has focused on growth and investment at the expense of affordable housing, substance disorder treatment and addressing trauma in communities ravaged by the punitive approach to drug arrests in the 90’s and by many measures the highest incarceration rate in the nation. It’s time to shift our focus from pricing Washingtonians out of their neighborhoods to investing in the well-being of our citizens, many of whom struggle every day to be safe and healthy.