New York City is considering releasing 200 more inmates from its prisons to mitigate the spread of the coronavirus.
The Department of Corrections reported 17 employees and 29 inmates have tested positive for the coronavirus as of Sunday. The city has already released 63 inmates to keep the number of those vulnerable to infection from growing.
Democratic Mayor Bill de Blasio said Monday the city intends to release “initially hundreds” from prisons, with the New York Police Department reviewing 200 inmates for potential release.
“Those are the categories we’re looking at, and we’re going to announce day by day the number of people we think is appropriate,” de Blasio said on 1010 WINS radio station Monday morning.
Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced the state is facing 20,875 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and 157 deaths. New York City has 12,305 cases, more than half of the state figure.
“I see it as a wave that will break at one point, and the question is, what is the point of the break?” Cuomo said. “When the wave breaks, does it crash over the healthcare system?”
President Trump activated the National Guard in a few states, including New York, Sunday to help combat the outbreak.
“We’ve signed what we had to sign, and it’s [the National Guard] been activated,” Trump said. “These states have been hit the hardest. … Everybody can see that — just look at the numbers.”
