Friday, January 1, 2021

State Prison Offender Dies after Testing Positive for COVID-19

Raleigh
Jan 1, 2021

An Alexander Correctional Institution offender with pre-existing medical conditions, who tested positive for COVID-19, has died at a hospital.

“We continue working diligently to mitigate the impact of COVID-19 in our prisons because the health and safety of the staff and the offender population continues to be our top priority,” said Todd Ishee, Commissioner of Prisons. “We sympathize with the offender’s family, as losing a loved one is hard enough, but especially so during the holiday season.”

The offender was hospitalized on Dec. 7, the same day he tested positive for COVID-19. His condition worsened, and he died on Dec. 31.

The offender was a male in his early-70s who had underlying health conditions. Given his family’s right to privacy and the confidentiality of prison offender records, the Department of Public Safety will not further identify the individual.

Prisons leadership has taken more than four dozen actions throughout the North Carolina prison system to try to prevent transmission of the virus. They are found here:. 

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