Fort Worth women’s prison faces coronavirus outbreak; 12th inmate dies at men’s prison
As of Monday, 51 women and two staff members had tested positive for COVID-19 at the women’s federal medical prison in Fort Worth. And at Fort Worth’s male prison, a 12th inmate died from the virus on Friday.
FMC Carswell, the only federal medical prison for women in the country, houses 1,390 women, many of whom have medical conditions.
In April, Carswell inmates talked to the Star-Telegram about their fears of the virus spreading in the prison. In a letter to Warden Michael Carr, several inmates asked him to release all elderly and sick nonviolent offenders to home confinement and said a single case of coronavirus could have the effect of lighting a match on a book of matches.
“If there was ever a time to show mercy and compassion, this is it,” they wrote.
On April 28, Andrea Circle Bear, an inmate at FMC Carswell, became the first woman to die from coronavirus while in federal custody. On April 1, she gave birth while on a ventilator. Three days later, she tested positive for COVID-19, the BOP said.
Before Circle Bear’s death, FMC Carswell’s officer union warned about dangerous conditions at the prison in a whistleblower complaint. According to a letter sent to U.S. Sen. John Cornyn of Texas on April 7, staff were given minimal guidelines about how to deal with the virus.
After the letter, prison administration started enforcing safety precaustions, said Christopher Beasley, local steward of the officers’ American Federation of Government Employees union.
FMC Carswell administrators and the Bureau of Prisons did not immediately respond to comment about Carswell’s outbreak.
Death at FMC Fort Worth
Robert Hague-Rogers, 83, never tested positive for COVID-19, but he was hospitalized with shortness of breath in April and had a positive antibody test, the Bureau of Prisons said in a press release.
Hague-Rogers tested negative for coronavirus on April 21 and April 23. On April 27, he was taken to the hospital for breathing problems. On July 3, he died at the hospital.
Hague-Roger was a former North Texas insurance salesman, and authorities said he stole money from insurance accounts for personal use. He was ordered to repay more than $9.3 million, CBS DFW reported in 2012.
Hague-Rogers had long-term, pre-existing medical conditions, according to the BOP. He was sentenced to 120 months in prison in the Northern District of Texas for conspiracy to commit theft or embezzlement from an employee benefit plan and conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud.
He had been at FMC Fort Worth since May 2013.
Nearly half of the inmates at the men’s prison have tested positive for COVID-19 at one point.
- On April 22, Arnoldo Almeida was the first man from the prison to die from coronavirus.
- Donnie Grabener, 65, died on April 25, and Oscar Ortiz, 78, died April 24.
- On May 2, Kevin Ivy, 59, died within six days of being diagnosed with COVID-19.
- Guadalupe Ramos, 56, died at John Peter Smith Hospital on May 10, hours before his family planned to take him off life support, his niece Veronica Chavez said.
- Thomas Rogers, 79, died May 12.
- Vernon Adderley, 56, died May 11, and his release was scheduled for May 19. He had served about 19 years in prison, according to court records.
- Charles Hanberry, 74, died on May 15.
Bich Tran died on May 17.
Joseph Young, 63, died on May 19.
Robert Hoffman, 75, died on June 10.
This story was originally published July 6, 2020 at 6:18 PM with the headline "Fort Worth women’s prison faces coronavirus outbreak; 12th inmate dies at men’s prison."
