The coalition’s report states that inmates have been eating three bags of cold meals every day for nearly two years. These meals usually consist of bologna sandwiches and occasionally an apple or carrot. According to inmates, the sandwiches are often spoiled. Deputies also leave food trays out on the floor, according to prisoners. This can lead to bugs infesting the food.
According to the report, Orange County jail inmates report that sandwiches were given to them with moldy bread and rotten, discolored meat. The bologna can sometimes leak a dark liquid and be blotched with small green spots. Many people have reported feeling so orange county jail inmate search sick they had to seek medical attention. When food is too bad, people will often skip meals and sometimes skip several meals at once.
According to the report, Orange County jails used to provide two hot meals per day. These included spaghetti, hamburgers, and stew. The report states that these meals were stopped in March 2020, when the pandemic hit. Todd Hylton, a spokesperson for the Sheriff’s Office, stated that hot meals were not provided to inmates in order to ensure their safety and health.
Advocates and inmates have worked together to reinstate hot meals, and even contacted the Board of State and Community Corrections. In April, after being contacted in by the ACLU the board informed the agency that it had violated a regulation by failing to provide hot meals for inmates in Orange County’s men’s and ladies’ jails, Theo Lacy jail, Lamoreaux Justice Center, and the Intake Release Center.
Orange County Sheriff’s Department adheres to Board of State and Community Corrections requirements regarding meals. We are currently in compliance BSCC meal guidelines,” Carrie Braun, a spokeswoman for the Sheriff’s Department, stated Wednesday in an emailed statement. “OCSD continues to provide religious and medical diets throughout the pandemic and has not been suspended. We are currently reviewing the report of the ‘Stop the Musick coalition, which has the stated goal to ‘work[ing] towards a world that doesn’t incarcerate’. We disagree with their claims that OCSD serves spoiled or nutritionally poor food to incarcerated people.
They’re not telling us they’re cooking hot meals, they’re just making an appearance,” an Orange County Jail inmate said in the report. The’soup” is disgusting. It’s a liquid with no substance. It is broth with some floating tomatoes and onions. It’s as simple as dipping a spoon into the broth and getting nothing. For almost two years, it’s been three sack lunches per day. Two years ago, they started murdering us. If I didn’t get commissary every once in a while I would have been starving.
The report states that inmates are not being provided hot meals and jail staff are not accommodating medical dietary restrictions. This is despite the fact that some prisoners have heart conditions, Crohn’s disease, allergies, or diabetes. The report also states that jail personnel are not accepting inmates’ religious diets such as Halal and Kosher food restrictions. This is “dehumanizing”.
The coalition states that food is more than just sustenance. It is also a key component of culture and spiritual practice. People are deprived of an important part of their spiritual life when they have to eat outside of religious dietary guidelines.
Inmates’ health can be affected by the food they eat in Orange County jails. The coalition collected data about the nutritional content of food that was served to inmates as part of its report. According to the coalition, inmates receive food that contains more sodium than recommended by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. This can lead to hypertension and other health problems. Inmates suffering from hypertension and high blood pressure were not being treated by jail staff according to a report of the Orange County Grand Jury. This led to deaths and hospitalizations.
The coalition found that Orange County jail meals contain over 150% FDA-recommended daily oils, nearly 290% of recommended daily carbs by the 2015-2025 Dietary Guidelines For Americans, and 125% of recommended daily cholesterol by 2015-2025 Dietary Guidelines For Americans. Health issues such as hypertension, heart disease, and diabetes can be caused by excess fats, carbs, and cholesterol.