Cisneros filed a habeas petition seeking to vacate his 18 U.S.C. § 924(c) conviction after the Supreme Court's decision in United States v. Davis, 139 S. Ct. 2319 (2019). The government did not contest that motion to vacate, but argued that Cisneros should be resentenced and kept at his place of detention for another year. The court rejected the government's proposal, concluding that, in light of the risks of COVID-19 and other factors such as Cisneros's post-conviction rehabilitation efforts, it needed not to resentence Cisneros and expose him to the unnecessary risk of contracting COVID-19, and could directly vacate the conviction.
United States v. Cisneros, No. 5:20-cv-02763-EJD, 2020 WL 4349825 (N.D. Cal. July 29, 2020)
DETAILS
Decision
Date
7/29/2020
Practice Area
Criminal (Federal Charges)
Relief Requested
Release
Type of Court
Federal District Court
Location
California
Type of Case
Individual
Case Characteristics
Post-Conviction Detention [jail or prison]
Release Granted
Yes
Compassionate Release Case
No
Case Tracking Number
5:20-cv-02763-EJD
MORE CASE INFORMATION
Court Name
N.D. Cal.
Decision
Motion Granted
Place of Incarceration
Federal Prison
Name of Facility
FCI Fairton
Legal Authority
Other, 18 U.S.C. § 924(c)
Release Conditions
14-day quarantine upon release
Convictions
Racketeering conspiracy, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1962(d); use of a firearm in relation to a crime of violence, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 924(c); possession with intent to distribute 5 grams or more of methamphetamine, in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(B)(viii)
Case Status
Decision Made
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.