Family says man died from COVID-19 in California prison months before release

LOS ANGELES (KABC) – Los Angeles County family demands heightened precautions from California’s Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation after saying their loved one died from COVID-19 just months before their scheduled release .

“They are locked in a building and they are supposed to be safe, but they are not safe,” said Swekeda Ellis, who said her brother, Tramond Thomas, died after contracting coronavirus inside from the High Desert State Prison in November.

“It’s awful and it’s sad. My brother shouldn’t have been through this. They’re bringing the virus into the prison system, and it’s like they don’t care.”

His loss comes as the CDCR grapples with a spike in coronavirus cases.

WATCH | Extended interview with Tramond Thomas’ sister, Swekeda Ellis

Using CDCR data as of December 1, Eyewitness News found that around 16% of all positive COVID-19 cases in the state’s 35 prisons, over 3,300 inmates, have been identified in the past two weeks of November.

At High Desert State Prison in northeast California, where Ellis’ brother was in custody, the spike was even bigger.

About 2 in 3 inmates fell ill at the facility until December 1, tested positive for COVID-19 within those same 14 days.

Ellis said Thomas, 44, sent him a letter in mid-November saying he tested positive for COVID-19 amid an outbreak at the facility.

“The building is getting sick,” Ellis said, reading Thomas’s letter aloud. “I tested positive for COVID. Keda, pray for me. I love you all. I am really sick. My body hurts and it hurts to breathe. I am scared. I don’t want to die in prison.

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This letter was his brother’s last words. A day later, Ellis got a call from the state saying his brother had passed away.

“It hurts my soul to know that this was the last thing he wrote. He was scared,” Ellis said. “It hurts me. It hurts me that I can’t do anything.”

While the state said a person held at High Desert State Prison died of COVID-19 on the same day Thomas died, the state declined to confirm whether Thomas contracted COVID- 19, citing medical confidentiality laws.

Thomas’ death certificate says his cause of death is pending / unknown. A spokesperson for Lassen County, where the prison is located, said the medical examiner is awaiting toxicology to confirm a cause of death that could take up to eight months.

“I just want to shed some light because I’m not the only person going through this,” Ellis said.

Ellis said she was devastated by the loss of her brother, but also angry with the state for not giving him answers or the opportunity to say goodbye.

“It’s not fair,” Ellis said. “Just because they’re in prison doesn’t mean they don’t have a life. It doesn’t mean they don’t have a family.”

A spokesperson for the CDCR referred to the recent increase in coronavirus cases and the state’s efforts to stop the spread of the virus in a statement.

“The well-being and safety of the population and staff incarcerated within the CDCR and CCHCS are our top priority. We are immediately responding to the increase in positive COVID-19 cases at High Desert State Prison (HDSP) by coordinating efforts to increase the frequency. testing, performing contact tracing and implementing isolation and quarantine measures to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, ”the spokesperson wrote.

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The spokesperson added that the state was staggering inmates’ meal and leisure times to allow for greater social distancing and increased time for disinfection. The state also announced that it was suspending admissions to county jails and increasing mandatory testing of prison staff and inmates.

In-person visits have been suspended since March.

Staff must also wear face masks and inmates have also been given masks and cleaning supplies, the spokesperson said.

Ellis’ brother Thomas was months away from his scheduled release from prison after serving a 24-year sentence following a conviction for armed car theft and kidnapping, when he died on November 17.

Thomas had been imprisoned since the age of 19.

“It’s really hurtful because we had plans. He was so full of life and excitement to come home,” Ellis said, biting back tears.

“He had a different mindset and he was eagerly awaiting a second chance. He knew he had a second chance. I mean he’s been here since he was 19. COVID took everything from him and I believe the prison took that from him as well. “

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