Olympia, WA: Phone-Zap Demanding Release of Thurston County Prisoners Amid Covid-19 Crisis

Call for phone-zap campaign in Olympia, Washington at the Olympia City jail on Monday. Originally posted to Puget Sound Anarchists.

We are calling on officials at Olympia City Jail, Thurston County Corrections Facility, Thurston County Juvenile Detention Center, and Cedar Creek Corrections Center to release all persons currently being held at those facilities.

It is our belief that all forms of incarceration are an assault on the dignity and humanity of those in its cages. In this unprecedented time it is of utmost importance that all people be allowed to keep themselves safe, to practice necessary measures to prevent the community spread of COVID-19. This is impossible while Thurston County continues to hold people in jails, Juvenile Detention Center and Cedar Creek Corrections Center. It is impossible to practice “social distancing” while incarcerated in jail or prison. It is imperative for the inmates and anyone who could be affected by the spread of Covid-19 that everyone be released from Olympia City Jail, Thurston County Corrections Facility, Thurston County Juvenile Detention Center, and Cedar Creek Corrections Center.

Thurston county has reduced the inmate population slightly in recent days but 285 human beings remain in Thurston County Correctional Facility. Full release of all those incarcerated is the only acceptable measure to adequately address this public health crisis. DOC staff and inmates in other Washington facilities have tested positive for Covid-19 as have jail inmates in other counties. To force people to remain inside these facilities is tantamount to locking the cells and walking away as the flood waters rise.

Call in to demand the immediate release of all those incarcerated in Thurston County!

Call these numbers to demand that Thurston County release the people held in its jails and halt all new admissions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Failing to release prisoners now will be paid for in human lives, and we refuse to abandon our neighbors and loved ones to die in cells.

Who to Call:

Ramiro Chavez
County Manager
(360) 786-5440
https://www.thurstoncountywa.gov/email/pages/default.aspx?List-ID=11

Thurston County Prosecutor
Jon Tunheim
360-786-5540
[email protected]

Thurston County Jail
360-786-5510
extension 4 for Medical

Thurston County Sheriff’s Office
360-786-5500
extension 0

Script:

“My name is ______, and I am a Thurston County resident deeply concerned about the safety of the city’s incarcerated people during the COVID-19 pandemic. Incarcerated people have a unique vulnerability to disease due to their crowded living conditions and lack of access to adequate medical care. For humanitarian reasons as well as reasons of public health, we call for the immediate release of all people in Olympia City Jail, Thurston County Corrections Facility, Thurston County Juvenile Detention Center and Cedar Creek Corrections Center. It is also of utmost importance to immediately halt any further arrests or detention as this pandemic and state of emergency continue. Ignoring incarcerated people in this crisis will result in an acceleration of the pandemic and the unnecessary death of Thurston County Residents. We refuse to abandon our neighbors and loved ones to die in lockup.”

If you call and get through let us know what they said at [email protected]