The court granted a preliminary injunction on May 13, 2020, immediately releasing the petitioner from immigration detention on bail. Petitioner suffers from schizophrenia-spectrum disorder and has been in ICE detention for 560 days (at the time of this opinion) without bond. Petitioner "demonstrated that his conditions of confinement in light of his vulnerabilities amount to punishment under the Due Process Clause" because the conditions at ECCF make social distancing impossible, there have been confirmed cases in the facility, and the petitioner is at high-risk of infection. The court cites the petitioner's worsening mental illness and the fact that ECCF is at the epicenter of the outbreak and cannot implement social distancing as the primary facts warranting the "extraordinary remedy of release on bail."
B.R. v. Tsoukaris. Civ. A. No. 20-3347 (MCA), 2020 WL 2744586 (D.N.J. May 27, 2020)
DETAILS
Decision
Date
5/27/2020
Practice Area
Immigration
Relief Requested
Parole Hearing, Preliminary Injunction (PI), Release, Temporary Restraining Order (TRO)
Type of Court
Federal District Court
Location
New Jersey
Type of Case
Individual
Case Characteristics
Elderly, Immigrant Detention, Low-Level Offenses, Post-Conviction Detention [jail or prison], Pre-Existing Health Conditions
Release Granted
Yes
Compassionate Release Case
No
Compassionate Release Specific Characteristics
Has a significant criminal history
Case Tracking Number
20-cv-3347-MCA
MORE CASE INFORMATION
Court Name
D.N.J.
Decision
Motion Granted
Place of Incarceration
Local / County Jail
Name of Facility
Essex County Correctional Facility
Legal Authority
Eighth Amendment - Deliberate Indifference, Substantive Due Process - Deliberate Indifference (both 14th and 5th Amendments), Substantive Due Process - Punitive Detention (both 14th and 5th Amendments)
ICE electronic bracelet monitoring; home confinement (may leave home for food and other necessities like medical treatment); can work if lawfully authorized to work in the U.S. and if job is deemed "essential"; "shall seek out and receive outpatient mental health treatment at an appropriate local outpatient mental health treatment facility"; must receive case management services from specified case worker; must comply with all court orders and attend all court dates; must comply with all of ICE's standard conditions of release; must comply with shelter-in-place orders and CDC guidelines; court will hold teleconference on June 9, 2020 to hear argument as to whether PI should be extended
Convictions
3rd degree burglary; 3rd degree theft by unlawful taking
Case Status
Decision Made But Case Still Pending
Compassionate Release Exhaustion Holdingsin Federal Case
Other, "The Court concludes that § 3582(c)(1)(A) does not require the Court to wait to consider a compassionate release request if there is a credible claim of serious and imminent harm from this pandemic." Id. at 9.
Pre-Existing Health Conditions
Age, Anxiety, Asthma, Cardiac Disease, Depression, High Cholesterol, Hypertension (high blood pressure), Obesity, Serious and Persistent Mental Illness (SPMI)
Pre-Existing Health Conditions Notes
SPMI (No formal diagnosis, but medical expert conducted evaluation and concluded petitioner suffers from Schizoaffective Disorder or Major Depressive Disorder with Psychotic Features)
COVID-19 Positive or Symptomatic
No
COVID-19 in Jail Prison or Detention Center
Yes
Litigation Database
Crowdsourced legal documents from around the country related to COVID-19 and incarceration, organized, collected, and summarized for public defenders, litigators, and other advocates. Created and managed by Bronx Defenders, Columbia Law School’s Center for Institutional and Social Change, UCLA Law COVID-19 Behind Bars Data Project, and Zealous. Mostly federal court opinions, but now expanding to states and legal filings, declarations, and exhibits.
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