Activists urge for Santa Rita Jail inmates to be released amid COVID-19 outbreak

DUBLIN, Calif - Protesters held a rally and march in Dublin on Monday to demand many inmates at the Santa Rita Jail be released during the pandemic.

They said the Alameda County sheriff should release sick inmates who require medical care, and inmates who have not been to trial yet.

"The jail continues to imprison people who are predominantly pre-trial, effectively punishing people who are constitutionally innocent with a real risk of death," a woman said at the rally 

 The advocates from the Ella Baker Center in Oakland said they also want independent and unannounced inspections of the jail.

The latest count shows there are 106 cases of COVID-19 at the jail, including inmates and staff.

Officials say they have released more than one-thousand inmates since the pandemic began.