DC Jail Moving Inmates Due to Failing Air Conditioning System Amid Heat Wave, Sources Say

As temperatures approach 100 degrees, dozens of inmates at the D.C. jail are being relocated, News4 has learned.

Sources said 197 inmates have been moved out of the jail or relocated to other parts of the jail, because the air conditioning system at the facility is failing. Twenty inmates facing federal charges have been moved to another facility by U.S. marshals. Sources said 95 inmates have been moved to the privately run Correctional Treatment Facility (CTF) next door to the D.C. Jail and 82 inmates have been moved to other cell blocks within the D.C. Jail.

Temperatures inside the aging jail remain in the high 70s and low 80s, sources say. Inmates older than 50 years old or those with medical conditions are being moved.

This comes after News4 broke the story that a 70-year-old inmate suffered an apparent stroke and died last week. Jail officials say there's no evidence the death of Lester Irby was caused by the high temperatures. 

Irby's daughter, Lelicia Haigler, said she wants more information.

"I really would like to find out, why did he have to live in those conditions?" she said.

D.C.'s jail isn't the only one facing extraordinary temperatures: the jail in St. Mary's County, Maryland, was built with no air conditioning at all.

News 4’s Mark Segraves gets an exclusive tour of the St. Mary’s County jail Friday. Temperatures inside have reached 100 degrees this summer because the facility has no air conditioning.

Inmates are getting fans, extra ice water and extra shower time during the heat wave.

"It's too much, it's too hot," said Capt. Michael R. Merican, warden of the St. Mary's County Detention Center. "Remember, look at my officers. They are in uniform all day."

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