Two more die at San Quentin of coronavirus, bringing death toll to nine

SAN QUENTIN, Calif. - Two more inmates at San Quentin prison have died of COVID-19, according to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

They both died Saturday at an outside hospital.

So far, nine inmates at the prison have died from the virus, since the outbreak began there.

Faced with growing cases and community pressure, Gov. Gavin Newsom on Friday announced that up to 8,000 prisoners in California would be released on a rolling basis in August.  The release includes people who were scheduled to be freed soon and people at high risk of complications if they contract the virus. 

Releases will only be granted to those with a year or less remaining on their sentence. Those serving time for domestic violence, violent crime, sexual offenders or posing a high risk for violence won’t qualify.