The plaintiffs initially filed suit requesting the release of Oakland County Jail inmates and certain safety protocols to protect all jail inmates from the virus because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The court certified the matter as a class action granted final approval to the proposed class action settlement reached by the parties. The settlement puts in place improved conditions but does not grant any releases.
Cameron v. Bouchard, 2:20-cv-10949-LVP (E.D. Mich. July 22, 2021)
DETAILS
Decision
Date
07/22/2021
Practice Area
Criminal (State Charges)
Relief Requested
Other, Approval of Class Settlement
Type of Court
Federal District Court
Location
Michigan
Type of Case
Class Action
Case Characteristics
Post-Conviction Detention [jail or prison], Pretrial Detention [jail]
Release Granted
No
Compassionate Release Case
No
Case Tracking Number
2:20-cv-10949-LVP-PTM
MORE CASE INFORMATION
Court Name
E.D. Mich.
Decision
Other
Place of Incarceration
Local / County Jail
Name of Facility
Oakland County Jail
Legal Authority
Other, Federal Rules of Civil Procedure § 23(e)(2)
Case Status
Decision Made
Improved Conditions Ordered
The judge ordered the final approval of the settlement agreement, which involved providing vaccines to inmates, providing masks and hygiene/cleaning supplies, allowing daily showers, requiring jail staff to use PPE and follow hygiene protocols, conducting tests for symptomatic individuals, conducting testing for inmates in the same cell block as a confirmed case, ensuring adequate spacing between inmates, and isolating infected inmates from non-infected inmates. The settlement agreement also required the defendants to communicate and educate inmates about COVID-19 risk and procedures, train staff about COVID-19, prohibit punitive transfers to quarantined areas/areas with higher infection rates, and retaliating against inmates who complain about conditions in the jail.
Class Action Medically Vulnerable People
Attorneys initially asked the court to include hypertensive patients in the medically vulnerable subclass, but the court refused. Hypertension is excluded as a condition that qualifies for inclusion of prison inmates from the medically vulnerable subclass. The Settlement Agreement does not provide any greater benefit to the subclass of medically vulnerable inmates than the Class.
COVID-19 Positive or Symptomatic
Not Discussed
COVID-19 in Jail Prison or Detention Center
Not Discussed
Organization Legal Filings Templates and Decisions
United States District Court Eastern District of Michigan Southern Division
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.
This resource is designed to help lawyers, advocates, researchers, journalists, and others interested in challenging, remedying, or drawing attention to the grave risk that Covid-19 poses to individuals who are detained.