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Cook County jail detainees sue for release or transfers in face of outbreak

Several attorneys and civil rights groups have filed a class-action lawsuit against Sheriff Thomas Dart seeking to remove more detainees from Cook County jail amid the outbreak of COVID-19.

With the jail head count already hovering at or near record lows following the recent release of mostly nonviolent detainees, the federal complaint filed Friday seeks immediate release or transfer of detainees whose age or medical conditions put them at risk if they get COVID-19.

As of Monday morning, the jail population was 4,567 - a drop of more than 1,000 from a month ago. Jail officials Sunday reported that 234 detainees and nearly 80 jail staff members have tested positive for COVID-19.

Dart called the lawsuit "counterproductive." He said the jail is isolating more inmates in single cells and setting up an isolation area inside a former jail boot camp that can house hundreds of detainees.

• This report was produced in partnership with the Chicago Sun-Times. For related coverage, visit chicago.suntimes.com.

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