The court granted Connell’s motion for compassionate release due to his underlying health conditions and the fact that FCI Lompoc had the most severe COVID-19 prison outbreak in the country at the time. After an extensive analysis, the court determined that the First Step Act exhaustion requirement was a non-jurisdictional claims processing rule subject to equitable exceptions. The court also noted that it was unlikely Connell would be able to get the medical care he needed at Lompoc in the midst of the pandemic.
United States v. Connell, No. 18-cr-00281-RS, 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 81642 (N.D. Cal. May 8, 2020)
DETAILS
Decision
Date
5/8/2020
Practice Area
Criminal (Federal Charges)
Relief Requested
Release
Type of Court
Federal District Court
Location
California
Type of Case
Individual
Case Characteristics
Elderly, Post-Conviction Detention [jail or prison], Pre-Existing Health Conditions
Release Granted
Yes
Compassionate Release Case
Yes
Case Tracking Number
18-cr-00281-RS
MORE CASE INFORMATION
Court Name
N.D. Cal.
Decision
Motion Granted
Place of Incarceration
Federal Prison
Name of Facility
FCI Lompoc
Legal Authority
First Step Act Exhaustion, First Step Act, 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A)
Convictions
Possession of child pornography
Case Status
Decision Made
Compassionate Release Exhaustion Holdingsin Federal Case
Exhaustion is subject to equitable exceptions.
Pre-Existing Health Conditions
Age, High Cholesterol, Hypertension (high blood pressure), Pre-Diabetes
Pre-Existing Health Conditions Notes
Age: 69
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.