The petitioners brought consolidated habeas corpus action alleging that they were in pre-trial custody in violation of the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment because the state trial court set bail in an amount they could not afford and without considering their indigency. The Court denied the petitions for writ of Habeas Corpus, and dismissed this action with prejudice on the grounds that petitioners did not make a substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right. The court concluded that "there is no indication from the record before this Court that Petitioners were imprisoned solely on the basis of their indigent status, or that the trial court subjected Petitioners to invidious discrimination on the basis of financial status."
Rasmussen v. Garrett, 489 F. Supp. 3d 1131 (D. Or. 2020)
DETAILS
Decision
Date
09/27/2020
Practice Area
Criminal (State Charges)
Relief Requested
Release
Type of Court
Federal District Court
Location
Oregon
Type of Case
Group
Case Characteristics
Pre-Existing Health Conditions, Pretrial Detention [jail]
Release Granted
No
Compassionate Release Case
No
Case Tracking Number
20-cv-00865 (IM)
MORE CASE INFORMATION
Court Name
D. Or.
Decision
Motion Denied
Place of Incarceration
Local / County Jail
Name of Facility
Washington County Jail
Legal Authority
Other, Procedural Due Process (both 14th and 5th Amendments), Equal Protection Clause
Legal Authority
§ 2241 Habeas
Convictions
Rasmussen (numerous convictions for felony or misdemeanor drug and property offenses between 1997 and 2010; failing to appear as ordered eight times between 1997 and 2012), Raney (two convictions for driving while under the influence in 2012 and 2017; three convictions for driving while suspended in 2013, 2018, and 2019; and history of failing to appear on two separate occasions), Villeda (previous convictions for assault and harassment).
Rasmussen (two counts of Rape in the First Degree; two counts of Unlawful Sexual Penetration in the First Degree; and four counts of Sexual Abuse in the First Degree), Raney (two counts of Assault in the Second Degree constituting Domestic Violence; two counts of Assault in the Fourth Degree constituting Domestic Violence; and one count of Unlawful Use of a Weapon), Mee (two counts of Sodomy in the First Degree; two counts of Using Child in Display of Sexually Explicit Conduct; and one count of Sexual Abuse in the First Degree), Villeda (one count of Rape in the First Degree constituting Domestic Violence; one count of Sodomy in the First Degree constituting Domestic Violence; two counts of Sexual Abuse in the First Degree constituting Domestic Violence; one count of Endangering a Person Protected by a Family Abuse Prevention Act Restraining Order;
one count of Tampering with a Witness; and three counts of Assault in the Fourth Degree constituting Domestic Violence).
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.
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.