KENTUCKY, USA — For weeks, WHAS11's Focus Team has been reporting on conditions inside the Green River Correctional Complex. As the number of positive COVID-19 cases among inmates and staff have climbed into the hundreds, families of those behind bars say preventative action has come too late.
"It's inhumane and it’s unjust what’s going on," said Amber Edmondson. Her brother Jason is an inmate at Green River Correctional Complex.
Edmondson said her brother just recently tested positive for COVID-19. She said his cellmate passed away from the virus.
“And he was the third inmate to die and he had been very very sick for over a week and had been asking for help and nobody did anything," Edmondson said.
She worries her brother will be next.
“He has a pre-existing heart condition, just 15 months ago he underwent bypass surgery," she said.
Shannon Coulter said her son Christian, another inmate at Green River, also has the virus.
“He has asthma, he has Hepatitis C, which they have yet to treat him for," said Coulter.
Christian and Jason are two of about 390 inmates and staff at Green River who’ve tested positive for COVID-19. On Tuesday, Governor Beshear revealed the extent.
“That’s still almost 40 percent of everybody working or in the prison," Beshear said.
In an email, Kentucky’s Department of Corrections told us in part: “We care about the inmate population and our staff and we are working hard to contain the spread of the virus.”
Among their efforts are suspended visitation, rigorous cleaning, and cloth masks for all inmates and staff. They told us they’re separating inmates by putting them in different buildings on the prison campus, based on their COVID-19 test results, and sanitizing cells in the process.
However, family members said these actions are coming too little, too late.
“They’ve waited too long to take action," Shannon Coulter said.
Families said their loved ones are low on basic necessities, like hand sanitizer and even food. Calling their confinement a potential death sentence, attorney Tricia Lister has filed petitions with the court on behalf of 10 inmates at Green River.
“What do we do about how these people are living in fear that they’re going to get seriously ill and maybe die," Lister said.
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Lister said several of the petitions will be heard by Jefferson Court judges next week.
“Maybe it’s a first step toward getting some help for Green River," she said.
A spokesperson with the Department of Corrections said they're continuing to work hard to protect everyone at Green River. Meanwhile, the families we interviewed told us the prevalence of COVID-19 at Green River shows just how quickly the virus can spread.
Contact reporter Paula Vasan at pvasan@whas11.com. Follow her on Twitter (@PaulaVasan) and Facebook.
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