El Paso County jail reduces population in last 3 weeks to control spread of coronavirus

With more than 1,500 inmates packed into the El Paso County Criminal Justice Center, the same social distancing that helps protect the public from the coronavirus is virtually impossible.

So, over the past three weeks, the Sheriff's Office has reduced the population of the jail by more than 400 inmates, a spokesperson confirmed to KRDO NewsChannel 13 Tuesday.

The inmates are believed to be low-risk offenders who pose no danger to the public. The inmates' victims, prosecutors, courts and the Sheriff's Office all had to agree to the early releases.

As of late Tuesday, the jail's population was 1,152.

With significantly fewer inmates, authorities believe they can better limit -- for inmates and staff -- the spread of the virus that causes the COVID-19 disease.

"We need to come up with other ways, and be very diligent, in our testing of those folks," said Dr. Leon Kelly, deputy medical director for the county health department and county coroner.

"Isolating them, getting symptomatic people separate from each other, and we've got really good plans in place and we'll continue to work very hard every day in keeping those folks safe."

Deputy Jeff Hopkins, who was assigned to the jail, died from complications of the disease last week. Seven other deputies are possibly infected, according to remarks last week from Sheriff Bill Elder.

The Sheriff's Office also has ended its work release program, likely because the remaining inmates don't qualify for it.

Since the pandemic began, many people -- including relatives and friends of inmates and staff -- have asked for details on what's being done to keep the virus under control at the jail.

In related news, county and Colorado Springs authorities held a briefing to update their efforts against the virus.

Mayor John Suthers, who said local officials weren't consulted before Gov. Jared Polis first issued his statewide stay-at-home order, expressed support at Polis' extending the order Monday, calling it "a prudent decision."

Echoing the optimism of Polis' briefing Monday, Suthers said, "I thank all the citizens for doing their part. We've seen a reduction in hospitalizations and positive tests. If we follow the advice of health experts, we can begin returning to normal as soon as possible, and begin the economic recovery."

Suthers said he's relieved that more people apparently are following social distance guidelines and not congregating in large groups at the most popular parks.

"I'm seeing people spreading out more," he said. "I feel better about it than I did several weeks ago."

Meanwhile, Police Chief Vice Niski -- as he predicted several weeks ago -- said officers are receiving fewer calls for service.

But that has created an unexpected result.

"So there's a little more time for our new officers in training," he said.  "They're actually a little appreciative of the time, but they're not seeing the amount of calls they need to do a sufficient amount of training with those employees.  So it's kind of a give-and-take right now."

Fire Chief Ted Collas asked citizens remain aware of dangers such as kitchen fires and discarded lighted cigarettes.

"Because of isolations, quarantines and the stay-at-home order, you may be living with more people than usual or cooking more than usual," he said. "All it takes is a little carelessness to have a real tragedy on your hands."

Niski and Collas said officers and firefighters receive regular training on how to respond to any virus-related service calls.

Editor's Note: A previous version of this story said that the jail had released 400 inmates. The jail reduced the population by a combination of strategies, including not doing as many initial holds and not holding inmates from other jails.