COVID-19 jail outbreak prompting burden for criminal court proceedings
EL PASO COUNTY (KRDO) -- The El Paso County Sheriff's Office says there are 693 inmates and 62 sheriff's office members who tested positive for coronavirus as of November 2.
After initial positive tests last month, the sheriff's office conducted widespread testing at the El Paso County Jail. On November 1, soldiers with the Colorado National Guard helped collect 1,028 samples.
But following the outbreak, it's also causing issues for criminal court proceedings. Colorado Springs Criminal Attorney, Jeremy Loew, tells KRDO that to his knowledge only one inmate will be brought to court in El Paso County. It's now expected to be a wait time of up to 30 to 40 days, resulting in a bottlenecked and delayed proceedings.
In fact, the attorneys for Letecia Stauch, the woman accused of murdering her stepson, have filed a motion to delay her next court hearing on Nov. 12. The motion requests more time for a second competency evaluation, citing issues with a COVID-19 outbreak at the El Paso County Jail.
The latest motion from her attorneys was filed on Oct. 30 and is asking the court to postpone her hearing until after Dec. 14.
The motion states that it's been difficult for Stauch to meet with a doctor due to a coronavirus outbreak at the jail. The judge has not made a decision on Stauch's appeal yet.
