The court denied petitioner’s motion for compassionate release, finding that she had not established an “extraordinary and compelling” reason for release because her condition, hepatitis C, was not listed by the CDC as high-risk and because the prison where she was incarcerated had only one active COVID-19 case. The court instead recommended home confinement under the CARES Act because petitioner had been a model prisoner, was due for release within eight months, and was more vulnerable to COVID-10 than a healthy prisoner due to her health condition.
United States v. Duford, No. 18-cr-042-LM, Dkt. No. 64 (D.N.H. June 30, 2020)
DETAILS
Decision
Date
6/30/2020
Practice Area
Criminal (Federal Charges)
Relief Requested
Release
Type of Court
Federal District Court
Location
New Hampshire
Type of Case
Individual
Case Characteristics
Pre-Existing Health Conditions, Significant Criminal History
Release Granted
No
Compassionate Release Case
Yes
Case Tracking Number
18-cr-042-LM
MORE CASE INFORMATION
Court Name
D.N.H.
Decision
Motions Partially Granted
Place of Incarceration
Federal Prison
Name of Facility
FCI Danbury
Legal Authority
CARES Act, Pub. L. No. 116-136, First Step Act, 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A)
Convictions
Petitioner plead guilty to conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine. The decision also stated that petitioner had a "lengthy criminal history."
Case Status
Decision Made
Date of Legal Filing
1/1/0001
Motions Partially Granted
The court denied compassionate release because petitioner had not established an “extraordinary and compelling reason” for release, but recommended that the BOJ grant home confinement to petitioner for the remainder of her sentence.
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
Hepatitis
Pre-Existing Health Conditions Notes
Hepatitis C
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.