The nearly 2,000 people caged in the Metro West Detention Facility, a majority of whom are Black and Brown, are at grave risk during the COVID-19 pandemic. Crowded conditions make social distancing impossible. Access to handwashing and cleaning supplies is limited. Healthcare is inadequate.
Along with Dream Defenders, Community Justice Project, Advancement Project National Office, GST LLP, and DLA Piper, we filed an emergency lawsuit against the Miami-Dade Department of Corrections. The lawsuit seeks the immediate release of medically vulnerable people in the jail. For those who remain in the jail, the lawsuit asks that conditions meet the guidelines set by the CDC for protection against the spread of the novel Coronavirus.