599 cases of coronavirus at Lompoc prison complex

May 8, 2020

Accelerated testing has revealed there is currently a total of 599 coronavirus cases at the Lompoc prison complex, a nearly six-fold increase from the previous count.

The majority of the cases exist at the minimum-security prison camp, where 541 inmates and 11 staffers currently have the virus, according to the federal Bureau of Prisons website. At the adjacent medium-security United States Penitentiary Lompoc, there are 33 active coronavirus cases among inmates and 14 among staffers.

A day prior, the Bureau of Prisons listed 111 active coronavirus cases at the Lompoc prison complex. That tally consisted of 52 inmate and 10 staff cases at the prison camp and 34 inmate and 15 staff cases at the penitentiary.

Officials have announced two Lompoc prison coronavirus deaths, one each at the penitentiary and satellite camp.

Last month, Lompoc penitentiary inmate Oliver Boling, 66, died after contracting coronavirus at the prison. Lompoc prison camp inmate Jimmie Lee Houston, 75, died Wednesday about a month after being hospitalized as a result of contracting coronavirus. Both Boling and Houston had long-term preexisting conditions.

Additionally, media reports have indicated Efrem Stutson, 60, died in April after contracting coronavirus at the Lompoc prison and then being released prior to the completion of his sentence.

Likewise, with staff members coming and going from the prison complex, concerns are arising that prison employees will spread the virus in and around the city of Lompoc.

Earlier this week, the Lompoc Federal Correctional Complex opened a newly built hospital for coronavirus patients. Workers transformed a decommissioned factory within the penitentiary into a hospital unit with 10 double-occupancy acute care rooms, a patient intake room, a nurses station, pharmacy, biohazard room, linen exchange room and medical supply storage area.

Elsewhere in California, another federal prison has even more coronavirus cases. FCI Terminal Island in San Pedro has 618 active cases among inmates and 15 among prison staff.