Public Defender v. Connors - Order to Improve Facility Conditions
The court ordered that efforts continue to reduce Hawaii state prison populations to design capacity and that the Department of Public Safety continue to report on "the number of COVID-19 tests administered to inmates and staff and the steps taken to prevent and mitigate the spread of COVID-19 within these facilities." The court also ordered that every effort be taken to update facilities' individual Pandemic Response Plans in accordance with current CDC guidance and recognized the HPA's authority "to release or discharge inmates on its own accord" under Hawai'i Administrative Rule § 23-700-51 (b).
Office of the Pub. Def. v. Connors, No. SCPW-20-0000200, 2020 WL 2126922 (Haw. May 4, 2020)
The court ordered that efforts continue to reduce Hawaii prison populations to design capacity and that the Department of Public Safety continue to report on "the number of COVID-19 tests administered to inmates and staff and the steps taken to prevent and mitigate the spread of COVID-19 within these facilities." The court also ordered that every effort be taken to update facilities' individual Pandemic Response Plans in accordance with current CDC guidance.
COVID-19 in Jail Prison or Detention Center
Not Discussed
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.