The court granted Calabrese compassionate release, finding that he had met his burden to show the existence of extraordinary circumstances warranting release under 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A). Calabrese was serving his sentence at FMC Lexington, and at the time he filed his motion, FMC Lexington had the third highest number of positive COVID-19 cases in the federal prison system. The court weighed the seriousness of the conditions at FMC Lexington with the fact Mr. Calabrese was 55 years old, has served almost his entire sentence, had no prior criminal history and has no record of being disciplined while incarcerated.
United States v. Calabrese, No. 3:16-cr-30033, 2020 WL 3316139 (D. Mass. June 18, 2020)
DETAILS
Decision
Date
6/18/2020
Practice Area
Criminal (Federal Charges)
Relief Requested
Release
Type of Court
Federal District Court
Location
Massachusetts
Type of Case
Individual
Case Characteristics
Post-Conviction Detention [jail or prison]
Release Granted
Yes
Compassionate Release Case
Yes
Case Tracking Number
3:16-cr-30033-TSH
MORE CASE INFORMATION
Court Name
D. Mass.
Decision
Motion Granted
Place of Incarceration
Federal Prison
Name of Facility
Federal Medical Center Lexington (Kentucky)
Legal Authority
First Step Act, 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A)
Convictions
Conspiracy to interfere with commerce by threats of violence, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1951; interference with commerce by threats or violence and aiding and abetting, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §§ 1951 & 2; conspiracy to use extortionate means to collect extensions of credit, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §894(a); and use of extortionate means to collect extensions of credit, in violation of 18 U.S.C. §894(a).
Case Status
Decision Made
Compassionate Release Exhaustion Holdingsin Federal Case
An individual can move for compassionate release after 30 days have passed from the date the application was submitted to the warden, irrespective of whether the warden has granted or denied the request.
Pre-Existing Health Conditions
Age
Pre-Existing Health Conditions Notes
Age (55)
COVID-19 Positive or Symptomatic
No
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.