North Hennepin News

In an effort to reduce COVID-19 exposure risk in the Hennepin County Jail, the county cut the jail population by 26% by releasing “low-risk” inmates.

The releases reduced the average daily population in the jail from 815 to 602 over the course of a week.

Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said some of those released were inmates awaiting a court appearance, those without a record of violence and individuals in custody for “relatively minor felonies.”

Individuals with convictions who are spending up to a year in the county workhouse can also be moved to electronic home monitoring, according to the Hennepin County Department of Community Corrections and Rehabilitation.

“A significant number of inmates leave every morning to go to their jobs. They are required to return to the workhouse at night and sleep in a cell,” Freeman said in a press release. “It would make sense to fit them with an electronic bracelet so they could return home after work.”

Freeman said that the release of inmates who are determined to be “unlikely to pose a threat to the public” will not only protect the health of prisoners and staff, but of the general public as well.

Across the county, concern has grown that jails – with frequent turnover in their populations and prisoners living in close quarters – could serve as hubs for the incubation and spread of the coronavirus.

Additionally, security measures requiring regular checks on inmates could put jail staff at added risk of contracting the virus from the population, as well as spreading it.

In accordance with state guidelines, visiting hours at Hennepin County Jail continue to be suspended.

Regardless of the releases, Freeman added that police will continue to arrest and charge those suspected of criminal behavior.

Victims of criminal activity concerned about their cases can reach out through the victim/witness phone line at 612-348-4003.