The plaintiff, in immigration detention at a facility in California, sought to convert a previous TRO granting him habeas relief in the form of immediate release to a preliminary injunction. The court first resolved several jurisdictional matters in the plaintiff’s favor, including a ruling that the plaintiff had standing to pursue his substantive due process claim seeking release due to COVID-19 despite the lack of COVID-19 cases at his detention facility. The court then agreed with the plaintiff that in light of his health conditions and the conditions at his detention facility, he has raised a substantial claim and has shown that extraordinary circumstances exist, such that temporary release is necessary to ensure that the habeas remedy he seeks can be effective. Concluding that the plaintiff had also shown a likelihood of irreparable harm and that the balance of equities and the public interest tilted toward the plaintiff, the court reasoned that the risks of release, which can be remedied through imposing conditions, did not warrant the denial of a preliminary injunction.
Singh v. Barr, No. 20-CV-2346-VKD, 2020 WL 2512410 (N.D. Cal. May 15, 2020)
Immigrant Detention, Parole or Probation Violations, Post-Conviction Detention [jail or prison], Pre-Existing Health Conditions, Pretrial Detention [jail], Significant Criminal History
Release Granted
Yes
Compassionate Release Case
No
Compassionate Release Specific Characteristics
Has a significant criminal history
Case Tracking Number
20-cv-2346-VKD
MORE CASE INFORMATION
Court Name
N.D. Cal.
Decision
Motion Granted
Place of Incarceration
Immigrant Detention, Not specified
Name of Facility
Mesa Verde Detention Facility
Legal Authority
Procedural Due Process (both 14th and 5th Amendments), Substantive Due Process - Deliberate Indifference (both 14th and 5th Amendments), Substantive Due Process - Punitive Detention (both 14th and 5th Amendments)
Legal Authority
Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA) [arises with “second or successive habeas petitions”], Bail Reform Act, Bail Pending Trial, 18 U.S.C. § 3142, First Step Act, 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A), Other, § 2241 Habeas, § 2255 Habeas, 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a)(2)(D), Fed. R. Civ. P. 35(a)
Release Conditions
Home confinement subject to GPS monitoring and reporting; obey all governmental shelter-in-place orders, regulations and protocols; the release is extended until otherwise ordered by the court, or as may be informed by the proceedings in Case No. 3:20-cv-02731-VC, Zepeda Rivas v. Jennings, et al. and findings made in that action concerning the conditions at Mesa Verde.
Convictions
Armed robbery, in violation of California Penal Code § 211, and unlawful taking or driving of a vehicle, in violation of California Vehicle Code § 10851(a)
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.