The changes for the 2020 holiday season have extended past how people are shopping this year, with even the Boulder County Jail making modifications to deal with COVID-19 in December.
The jail has been following new protocols since March to keep both staff and those incarcerated safe, but now some usual holiday events also are changing.
“We've had to restrict a lot of volunteers and program groups that have been coming in before COVID,” said Tim Oliveria, the Support Services commander for the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office Jail Division. “So how that's impacted us for the holidays, in years past, we've had local groups that want to come in and maybe do some kind of singing or caroling through the housing areas.”
Sheriff Joe Pelle in an interview with the Leader earlier this month said because of COVID, jail capacity has been reduced to 280 to 300 inmates at any given time, down from 560. Lower numbers mean inmates can be isolated and tested for COVID before they are incorporated into the general population, he said.
"We're trying to protect our staff and other inmates and the only way we can do that is to keep our numbers low," Pelle said.
Restrictions such as temperature checks and quarantining new inmates have been in place for most of the year, Oliveria said. Incoming inmates are separated for 14 days and receive a COVID test before being moved into the general population. Staff are required to wear face masks and are sent home if they’re showing any symptoms of the virus.
When it comes to visits from family and friends, those are now done over video conference. Oliveria said this is a change that was in the works before 2020 as jails around the country make use of new technology to avoid any issues during visitations. However, lawyers and other court-ordered officials can visit the jail behind glass. They also have to follow strict guidelines and temperature checks.
Despite all those efforts, pandemic-related problems still arise at the jail, including earlier this month when at least three inmates tested positive for COVID-19 after coming into contact with an employee who had the virus. This is something the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has been following and it even released guidelines specifically for jails and prisons.
In Boulder County, there are some traditions still in place at the jail, such as holiday decorations made by inmates that are hung in the common area as well as inmates’ own space. The jail provides arts and craft materials.
In recent years the jail has continued to push for more non-denominational decorations and focused more on wintertime, especially in shared spaces, but inmates can decorate their own areas with religious items.
However, Oliveria said despite all these efforts, the holidays can still be thorny.
“Not everybody wants to be reminded that they're incarcerated during the holidays. Sometimes it can be very draining, if you will, and down-putting for some, where they actually are affected when they see that,” he said. “So, we have to be mindful and sensitive to our entire clientele and not anyone in particular.”
The jail is still offering services for inmates, such as mental health, and has a mental health professional on staff, as well as a chaplain, available to those in need. It also continues to run programs to help better inmates' lives through education and training.
“All of these services are still being provided,” Oliveria said. “We're not abandoning anyone who might have been receiving service, we're just trying to provide it in a different way, in a different format that allows for safety, for both our staff and our clientele.”
