The court granted Dillard’s motion for compassionate release due to his various underlying health conditions, as well as the fact that the prison he was incarcerated in was overcrowded and COVID-19 was already spreading. The government argued that Dillard had only served less than half of his sentence and had yet to receive sex offender treatment. The court ruled that he would not be a danger to the community as long as his internet access was monitored and that he could begin treatment outside of prison when it was safe to do so.
United States v. Dillard, No. 1:15-CR-00170-SAB, 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 90818 (D. Idaho Apr. 28, 2020)
DETAILS
Decision
Date
4/27/2020
Practice Area
Criminal (Federal Charges)
Relief Requested
Release
Type of Court
Federal District Court
Location
Idaho
Type of Case
Individual
Case Characteristics
Post-Conviction Detention [jail or prison], Pre-Existing Health Conditions
Release Granted
Yes
Compassionate Release Case
Yes
Case Tracking Number
1:15-cr-00170-SAB
MORE CASE INFORMATION
Decision
Motion Granted
Place of Incarceration
Federal Prison
Name of Facility
FCI Terminal Island
Legal Authority
First Step Act Exhaustion, First Step Act, 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A)
Release Conditions
Limited access to the internet, as appropriate
Convictions
Possession and Access with Intent to View Child Pornography
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., An individual does not need to “issue exhaust” (i.e., does not need to mention COVID-19 in their application to the warden in order to rely on it in the motion to the court).
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.