[BreachExchange] Cyberattack leads to jail lockdown, violations

[Terrell Byrd]

https://www.abqjournal.com/2459954/cyber-attack-leads-to-jail-lockdown-settlement-violations.html

Bernalillo County filed an emergency notice in federal court last week
because a ransomware attack made the Metropolitan Detention Center unable
to comply with terms of a settlement agreement in a years-running lawsuit
over jail conditions.

The county last Wednesday announced its offices and systems were the
victims of a cyberattack, affecting a wide variety of county government
operations. Most county buildings were closed until further notice.

As a result, the county-operated MDC has been unable to access its cameras
since the attack, which is one of the reasons it has fallen out of
compliance in the McClendon v. City of Albuquerque lawsuit, which centers
on jail conditions.

The attack has limited how much time inmates can spend out of their cells,
and also reduced their access to telephones and tablets, according to the
filing. The county also has been unable to gather data required as a
condition of the settlement agreement. No visitors have been allowed.

The county said in the filing that its inability to access cameras is one
of the more concerning aspects of the cyberattack, which has caused the
facility to be on “lockdown” since Wednesday.

“This means inmates, even inmates in general population, are temporarily
limited to their cells,” Taylor Rahn, an attorney for the county, wrote in
the filing. Tia Bland, a county spokeswoman, said technicians over the
weekend had some success getting MDC cameras working. She said jail
officials are optimistic for more progress on Monday.

She said county headquarters at Alvarado Square will have limited public
access beginning at 8 a.m. Monday.

Local courts, also affected by the attack, have designated new spaces for
defendants.

A space was set up at Children’s Court in Albuquerque with secure laptops
so defendants can speak with their attorneys at hearings in state district
court. Metropolitan Court is designating more space for defendants at the
courthouse and considering moving some proceedings to a nearby building,
according to a news release from the Administrative Office of the Courts.

“I sincerely appreciate our criminal court bench, as well as Metropolitan
Court Chief Judge Maria Dominguez, all of our justice partners and the New
Mexico Supreme Court emergency response team for working quickly to enact
plans to allow criminal proceedings to continue in the face of this
unforeseen event,” Second Judicial District Court Chief Judge Marie Ward
said in a prepared statement on Friday.
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