The court granted a TRO for numerous petitioners in immigration detention at three facilities, ordering their immediate release. The petitioners suffered from several health conditions, including diabetes, hypertension, asthma, leukemia, and others. The court found that the petitioners had established a likelihood of success on the merits because "their continued incarceration in ICE detention facilities exposes them to serious risks associated with COVID-19 which violate their due process rights" and that "Respondents’ Facilities are plainly not equipped to protect Petitioners from a potentially fatal exposure to COVID-19."
Thakker v. Doll (Thakker I), No. 1:20-CV-480 JEJ, 2020 WL 1671563 (M.D. Pa. Mar. 31, 2020)
DETAILS
Decision
Date
3/31/2020
Practice Area
Immigration
Relief Requested
Release, Temporary Restraining Order (TRO)
Type of Court
Federal District Court
Location
New York
Type of Case
Group
Case Characteristics
Elderly, Immigrant Detention, Pre-Existing Health Conditions
Release Granted
Yes
Compassionate Release Case
No
Case Tracking Number
1:20-cv-480-JEJ
MORE CASE INFORMATION
Court Name
M.D. Pa.
Decision
Motion Granted
Place of Incarceration
Local / County Jail
Name of Facility
York County Prison, Clinton County Correctional Facility, Pike County Correctional Facility
Legal Authority
Eighth Amendment - Deliberate Indifference, Substantive Due Process - Punitive Detention (both 14th and 5th Amendments)
Legal Authority
§ 2241 Habeas
Release Conditions
Conditions not specified; the TRO is set to expire April 13, 2020.
Age (65); Asthma (severity not specified); Cancer (leukemia); Chronic Hepatitis B
COVID-19 Positive or Symptomatic
Yes
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.