Eighth Inmate Dies of Coronavirus at FCI Elkton

ELKTON, Ohio — An eighth inmate from the Federal Corrections Institution Elkton has died of COVID-19, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

James Druggan, 70, died Wednesday after having been transported from the federal prison April 6 to a local hospital. He had first been treated by the prison’s health services department for low oxygen saturation on April 5.

At the hospital, he tested positive for the virus and was placed on a ventilator. He had pre-existing medical conditions, the bureau reported. 

Druggan was sentenced in the Southern District of Ohio to 120 months for knowingly distributing visual depictions of child pornography in interstate commerce. He had been been at the FCI since February 2015.

The FBOP reported Wednesday 105 inmates and 49 staff members tested positive for COVID-19 in addition to the eight inmate deaths.

Joseph Mayle, president of the prison’s Law Enforcement Officers Union, reported 19 inmates hospitalized, with seven on ventilators; 49 in quarantine; 74 in isolation; and 50 staff members tested positive.

The county health department reported Wednesday morning one additional death among county residents, that of a 78-year-old female, bringing the total of deaths from COVID-19 to 31. Those include the eight inmate deaths and seven who were resident of long-term care facilities. 

An additional three positive cases were reported Wednesday, bringing the total for the county to 295, with 62 of those prison inmates and 29 residents of long-term care facilities. 

The Ohio Department of Health reported in its afternoon update 297 cases in the county, with 107 hospitalizations and 29 deaths. 

Copyright 2024 The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio.