Coronavirus: Eight inmates die with suspected COVID-19 on California's death row
Child killer John Beames, 67, is the latest to die with suspected COVID-19 at San Quentin State Prison, north of San Francisco.
Friday 24 July 2020 16:47, UK
At least eight prisoners on California's death row have died with suspected coronavirus.
Child killer John Beames, 67, is the latest to die at San Quentin State Prison, north of San Francisco.
He was sentenced to death in Tulare County in 1995 for the murder and torture of a 15-month-old.
Beames, who died of what appeared to be complications related to COVID-19 on Tuesday, is one of 15 inmates to have died with suspected coronavirus at the prison, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
The facility is witnessing the largest prison outbreak of the virus in the state.
So far there have been 2,125 confirmed COVID-19 infections at the prison which has a population of 3,497.
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On Friday it reported 870 active cases. Around 153 of these prisoners tested positive for the virus in the last two weeks.
Another 43 inmates have been released while still infected, according to the facility's COVID-19 tracker.
On Monday, child rapist Troy Ashmus, 58, died with suspected COVID-19 complications amid the outbreak sweeping through the prison.
There have been more than 7,300 confirmed COVID-19 cases among inmates in the state prison system
More than 800 employees also have active cases of COVID-19, according to corrections officials.