New data highlights just how deadly U.S. prisons became during the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic. Across the U.S., prison deaths spiked by almost 50 percent in 2020, jumping to 6,182 deaths from 4,240 the year before.
"The U.S. has seen a significant, continual increase in deaths in prisons over the past two decades, but never before have the country's prisons seen such a steep increase year-to-year," according to the University of California, Los Angeles Law Behind Bars Data Project.
