Reading Jacob Tierney’s article “More than 600 inmates released from Allegheny County Jail in Pittsburgh to slow pandemic” (March 31, Triblive) had me thinking was that it’s about time. But it shouldn’t take a pandemic for this to happen.
According to a report released by University of Pittsburgh’s Criminal Justice Progress Panel last year, 19% of ACJ inmates were convicted of a violent crime, while the remaining population had misdemeanors pending trials. In 2019, 28% of the jail population were only to be released by cash bail, when this goal is not obtainable for them. Despite potentially being innocent, the poor are criminalized for being poor.
Before this outbreak, there were approximately 2,400 people inside ACJ, reaching maximum capacity. This makes it a dangerous environment for everyone in that building. And most of the people there are not “criminals” — they are people who should be released.
If the jail wasn’t overcrowded, this issue would be smaller. However, with the disease rapidly spreading, we need even more rapid action. People aren’t being released fast enough. If we want this disease to stop spreading, then we need to put our biases aside and treat everyone as human.
Joseph Onstott
Carrick