File Photo The Ward County Jail has had 31 inmates test positive for COVID-19 since the pandemic began last spring.

The Ward County Detention Center has had 31 inmates test positive for COVID-19 since pandemic testing began, according to jail information.

Total bookings during 2020 are in the process of being tallied and are expected to be similar to the 4,516 bookings in 2018, Chief Deputy Larry Hubbard with the Ward County Sheriff’s Office said. There were 4,743 bookings in 2019. As of Monday morning, 150 inmates were being housed.

A former inmate who died of COVID-19 on Dec. 27 in a Minot hospital had tested negative at a mass testing Nov. 26 in the jail, according to the sheriff’s department. Upon complaining of illness on Dec. 16, he was taken to the hospital. Other members of his cell block quarantined for 10 days but did not become ill.

Eugene Whiteowl, 62, New Town, had been held in the Ward County Detention Center since March. He was charged with sexual abuse crimes stemming from alleged incidents on Indian reservations. The federal government released Whiteowl from custody on Dec. 17 and dropped charges after his death. The Ward County Jail had been holding Whiteowl for federal authorities.

The jail has had three mass testings since the pandemic began and also tests inmates if they show symptoms, said Chief Deputy Larry Hubbard.

The jail quarantines new inmates in isolation for at least seven days in a cell block set aside for monitoring, he said. If not showing signs of COVID-19, the inmates then move to another cell block, where they remain isolated from other inmates for up to seven days but have access to jail facilities for dining or recreation. Upon completion of quarantine, they enter the regular jail population.

The North Dakota Department of Corrections reports 612 prisoner COVID-19 cases to date across its facilities – North Dakota State Penitentiary, James River Correctional Center, Missouri River Correctional Center and Dakota Women’s Correctional and Rehabilitation Center. There have been two additional cases identified at the Youth Correctional Center.

The state prison had one active case and the Missouri River facility three active cases as of Monday. There has been one death involving a prisoner at James River.

In 2019, there were 1,530 adult admissions by the North Dakota Department of Corrections, with an adult prison population of 1,794 on Dec. 31, according to the latest statistics.