Northpoint Inmate Tests Negative For Coronavirus

Coronavirus Update For Wednesday, April 1

Robert Moore

Herald Staff

rmoore@harrodsburgherald.com

An inmate at Northpoint Training Center in Boyle County has tested negative for the coronavirus, Gov. Andy Beshear has announced.

The inmate was tested on Friday and placed in quarantine, according to a report by the Lexington Herald-Leader. The inmate’s dormmates were also quarantined.

According to the report, no state prisoners have tested positive for coronavirus so far, although the governor said Wednesday that four people at the Green River Correctional Complex—adminstrative and healthcare personnel—have tested positive for the coronavirus. An employee with the Fayette County Detention Center has also has tested positive, but city officials said Monday there is no need to quarantine staff or inmates, according to the Lexington Herald-Leader.

The Kentucky Department of Corrections has temporarily suspended visitation at all prisons until further notice, as have local jails, to reduce the chance of people carrying the virus back and forth between the facilities and the surrounding communities, according to the report.

Over the last few weeks, 28-percent of local inmates — more than 3,100 people — from Kentucky’s approximately 80 jails have been released. According to the Herald-Leader, most were criminal defendants awaiting trial who had not been able to afford bail. In many cases, bail was reduced or waived or defendants were released on home incarceration.

The population at Boyle County Detention Center was 161, according to a check of the jail’s website on Wednesday. Mercer County Attorney Ted Dean says most of those inmates, 118, are state inmates.

At Tuesday, Dean told the Mercer County Fiscal Court the jail’s low population was a collective effort by local prosecutors and judges, who were asked by the state to minimize the jail population because of coronavirus concerns.

Dean said Boyle County Jailer Brian Wofford was reporting illnesses in his staff that do not appear to be caused by the coronavirus.

“If you’ve got a fever, they don’t want you in the facility until you have been cleared,” Dean said.

At his Wednesday evening briefing, Gov. Beshear announced 93 new confirmed cases and two additional virus-related deaths, bringing Kentucky’s coronavirus death toll to 20.

Globally, 922,095 people have become infected with the coronavirus with the most of them—213,372—in the United States. According to Johns Hopkins University, 46,413 have died with most of them—13,155—in Italy. So far, 193,177 have recovered with most of them—76,405—in China. This data was current as of 7 p.m. on Wednesday, April 1.

Callers can reach the Kentucky COVID-19 Hotline at 1-800-722-5725, visit the Kentucky COVID-19 website at kycovid19.ky.gov or visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website at www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html.

Gov. Beshear and the Kentucky Public Protection Cabinet have established the Team Kentucky Fund, an online platform to provide financial help to Kentuckians whose employment is affected by the coronavirus. The governor challenged those who are able to help to make a tax-deductible donation to the fund. In addition, a website portal has been created to streamline the process for businesses looking to donate supplies and services for Kentuckians in need.

The state has also created the COVID-19 Reporting Hotline (833-597-2337) that will investigate complaints about non-compliance with coronavirus mandates. Labor Cabinet personnel will monitor the hotline from 7:30 a.m. to 9 p.m. ET. There is also a new state website Kentuckians can visit to make online complaints kysafer.ky.gov.

Each day at 5 p.m. ET, Gov. Beshear is holding briefings broadcast on local KET station WKLE 46 and online at his Facebook and YouTube pages.