California
1
2.1k
4.3k
Spikes represent the cumulative cases in a facility for incarcerated people
5
number of courts
33
number of facilities
30
compassionate releases granted
49
filings coded by our team
Statewide among incarcerated people
State Facilities
49,115
Cases
40%
Cumulative Case Rate
Federal Facilities
4,507
Cases
33%
Cumulative Case Rate
ICE Detention Centers
576
Cases
50%
Cumulative Case Rate
Data notesData notes
Testing practices vary widely by correctional agency. True case counts are likely higher and may be significantly higher than reported.
Rates are calculated using a denominator of facility-level population as of February 2020. See our methodology to learn more about why we chose this approach.
We do not display total counts for jails because our jail data is not comprehensive for the entire state. See the table below to view jail data at the facility level.
Statewide among staff
State Facilities
15,220
Cases
Federal Facilities
Unavailable
Cases
ICE Detention Centers
Unavailable
Cases
Data notesData notes
Not all agencies report data on staff COVID-19 cases. Some jurisdictions leave it to staff members’ discretion whether to report positive test results they receive from community healthcare providers.
We do not have reliable data for staffing levels at all facilities. As a result, we are not currently providing rates for staff.
We do not display total counts for jails because our jail data is not comprehensive for the entire state. See the table below to view jail data at the facility level.
Facilities by
| Facility | Incarcerated People | Staff |
|---|---|---|
Los Angeles Jails County Jails | 4,259 | 2,900 |
Avenal State Prison State Facilities | 3,107 | 522 |
Substance Abuse Treatment Facility State Facilities | 3,011 | 617 |
Correctional Training Facility State Facilities | 2,718 | 348 |
California Mens Colony State Facilities | 2,470 | 517 |
Legal Filings and Court Orders Related to COVID-19
Our project collaborates with Bronx Defenders, Columbia Law School’s Center for Institutional and Social Change, and Zealous to collect legal documents from around the country related to COVID-19 and incarceration. Together, we then organize and code them into the jointly managed Health is Justice litigation hub for public defenders, litigators, and other advocates. The majority of the legal documents in the Health is Justice litigation hub are federal court opinions, but we are expanding to state legal filings, declarations, and exhibits.
In addition to the Health is Justice litigation hub, our project also manages additional data self-reported by advocates regarding COVID-19-related legal filings involving incarcerated youth and individuals in immigration detention.
For more COVID-19-related legal filings, please visit the University of Michigan Law School’s Civil Rights Litigation Clearinghouse, COVID-19 Special Collection.
Prison and Jail Releases Related to COVID-19
We collect data on jurisdictions across the U.S. that have released people from adult prison and jail custody in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
For the most part, we only include release efforts where the data source includes some sort of programmatic description of who is being released (e.g., people with technical violations of parole, people charged with non-violent crimes, etc.). You can find our full prison releases dataset here and jail releases dataset here.
Grassroots and Community Organizing Efforts Related to COVID-19
Our team collects data on grassroots and community organizing efforts by incarcerated people, their families, community-based organizations, nonprofits, and advocates aimed at influencing government agencies to protect the lives of people incarcerated in prisons, jails, and detention centers against the threats posed by COVID-19.
You can find our full dataset here.