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Law360, New York (January 25, 2021, 6:19 PM EST) -- The warden in charge of the Metropolitan Correctional Center told a federal judge Friday that some inmates at the Manhattan detention facility have gotten a first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine, in a letter that followed renewed allegations of virus safety missteps.
Warden M. Licon-Vitale told Manhattan U.S. District Judge Edgardo Ramos that inmates as well as staff received vaccinations from an allotment the MCC received on Jan. 19. The letter did not specify how many inmates got their first dose or which vaccine was administered — and it was unclear when more doses would become available.
"We did not receive enough of the vaccine to vaccinate all of the inmates," the letter said.
Judge Ramos is overseeing a potential class action brought in April against the 598-inmate facility by prisoners, who claim the warden dropped the ball on testing and prevention in March and April as the coronavirus spread in New York. Over the summer, Judge Ramos pressed the warden, the Federal Bureau of Prisons and counsel representing the inmates to work together to address dangers posed by the pandemic, expressing a preference to avoid heavy-handed court orders.
The warden's letter was lodged nine days after a renewed request by the inmates — including lead plaintiff Cesar Fernandez-Rodriguez — to have Judge Ramos consider releasing inmates and ordering systemic fixes.
"To date, at least 53 staff members and 80 inmates have tested positive for the virus," the Jan. 13 filing says.
Warden Licon-Vitale's letter said that since Jan. 8 four inmates have tested positive for the virus, with 210 tests administered. The letter says no inmates who have recently tested positive have symptoms, while one is in isolation.
The letter also says that all inmate units have access to hygiene and cleaning supplies — addressing a bone of contention that inmates had earlier raised.
The letter also included the BOP's vaccine guidance, dated Jan. 4, which says among other things that "supply availability is expected to change as the BOP's COVID-19 immunization program progresses; therefore, planning should be focused and flexible."
Requests for comment to the BOP and its counsel from the Manhattan U.S. Attorney's office were not immediately returned Monday. A lawyer representing the inmates declined comment.
The inmates are represented by Arlo Devlin-Brown, Andrew Ruffino, Alan Vinegrad, Timothy Sprague and Ishita Kala of Covington & Burling LLP.
The government is represented by Jean-David Barnea, Jessica Hu and Allison Rovner of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York.
The case is Fernandez-Rodriguez et al. v. Licon-Vitale, case number 1:20-cv-03315, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
--Editing by Michael Watanabe.
Update: This story has been updated with additional information about the BOP's vaccine plan
For a reprint of this article, please contact reprints@law360.com.
