Massarah Mikati is reporting for the Times Union the Legal Aid Society has applied for emergency clemency on behalf of 40 state prisoners vulnerable to contracting and dying from COVID-19. The applications submitted to Gov. Andrew Cuomo are the latest action taken by advocates to release incarcerated people from New York prisons during the pandemic. In making the appeals, Legal Aid cited concerns that sanitary conditions and close quarters in prisons and jails are breeding grounds for the disease. Saying it is imperative for Cuomo to take action, David Loftis, attorney-in-charge of post-conviction litigation, said in a press release, “All of these individuals’ conditions warrant this immediate relief, especially as COVID-19 grows exponentially at prisons around New York State infecting our incarcerated clients and correction staff alike at an unprecedented rate." As of April 26, 296 of people in state custody have tested positive for COVID-19, and seven have died, according to DOCCS. There are also 994 staff members who tested positive and two employees have died. Read the full story in the Times Union.