Coronavirus In Chicago: 101 Cook County Jail Inmates Have Now Tested Positive
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A total of 101 Cook County Jail detainees had tested positive for coronavirus as of Sunday night, the Cook County Sheriff's office said.
As of 5 p.m., a total of 203 detainees had been tested for COVID-19. Nine others tested negative, while 93 have pending test results, the Sheriff's office said.
A total of 12 sheriff's office staff have also tested positive.
The first reported case at the jail, a correctional officer, was confirmed one week ago.
Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart said Friday there are currently about 5,000 inmates being held within the walls of the jail, the lowest population it's ever had. He said will allow the jail to have every inmate in a cell of his or her own within the next couple days, except for inmates who face mental health issues that require them to have a cellmate for therapeutic reasons, or to reduce the risk of suicide.
Dart also recently reopened a shuttered barracks facility used for an old boot camp program, so it can be used as a hospital for inmates who test positive for COVID-19, or as an isolation facility for others who are being quarantined.
