States Are Shutting Down Prisons as Guards are Crippled By Covid-19 States and counties are finding it hard to keep jails and prisons open as the virus ravages both prisoners and staff members. But transferring inmates can spur new outbreaks. A major virus outbreak at San Quentin State Prison took hold after a large group of inmates was transferred in from another prison.Credit...Max Whittaker for The New York Times By Brendon Derr, Rebecca Griesbach and Danya Issawi Jan. 1, 2021 Battered by a wave of coronavirus infections and deaths, local jails and state prison systems around the United States have resorted to a drastic strategy to keep the virus at bay: Shutting down completely and transferring their inmates elsewhere.