Los Angeles County Sheriff OKs Condoms for Gay Inmates

The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has quietly begun distributing condoms to gay inmates at its downtown jail, joining just six other jails and prisons in the country in an effort to stop the spread of AIDS and other STDs.

Under California law, sex in jails and prisons is considered a felony. Sheriff's officials insist, however, that they are not allowing inmates to have sex in jails and that they will investigate any inmates caught in the act. But, officials say, they are concerned also about the health implications of doing nothing.

"This is a health issue," said Chief Taylor Moorehead, who oversees the county jails and made the decision to allow condom distribution. "I did it only for health reasons. It's a sign of the times . . . and a reality-based response from me that says I acknowledge the fact that fatal disease is spread in this fashion," he said.

The Sheriff's Department, which runs the largest jail system in the country, spends $180,000 a month on AIDS medications to treat 220 inmates. Officials say they are identifying 500 inmates per month who are HIV-positive. And county health officials found 100 new HIV cases -- nearly 14 percent of the 723 screenings given to men over 10 months this year -- in the gay section of the jail. They also found 27 cases of chlamydia, 16 cases of gonorrhea and several cases of early syphilis in the unit.

Four other jails -- in New York City, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. -- and two prisons -- in Vermont and Mississippi -- offer condoms to inmates. Several require inmates to attend AIDS educational meetings as well.

Anne De Groot, who heads the HIV Prison Project at Brown University, said one in three hepatitis C cases occurs in people who spent time in prisons and jails. She praised the Sheriff's Department, but like others, suggested it could go even further. "Those who are identified as gay or who self-identify are not the only ones having sex," she said. But department officials said they have no plans to expand the program to the general jail population.

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