The court granted Raul Balboa Garcia’s motion for reduction of sentence pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A), in which he argued that his medical conditions place him at high risk of serious illness if he should contract COVID-19. In granting compassionate release, the court first reasoned that Garcia met the exhaustion requirement because more than thirty days have lapsed since he submitted his request for release to the warden. Second, the court found that Garcia had extraordinary and compelling reasons for sentence reduction because of his serious health conditions (66 years old, congestive heart failure, heart attack, hypertension, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma, lower back pain, spondylolisthesis, cervical disc disorder, retrolisthesis, and spinal/canal stenosis). Lastly, the court considered the § 3553(a) factors and concluded that Garcia would not be a danger to the community because he already served the majority of his sentence, had no history of misconduct while incarcerated, and although he had a significant criminal history, his most serious offense occurred more than 30 years ago. Therefore, the court granted Garcia compassionate release, with the condition that he be quarantined for 15 days before release and be on supervised release for five years.
United States v. Garcia, No. 13-cr-00884, 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 114312 (D. Haw. June 30, 2020)
DETAILS
Decision
Date
6/30/2020
Practice Area
Criminal (Federal Charges)
Relief Requested
Release
Type of Court
Federal District Court
Location
Hawaii
Type of Case
Individual
Case Characteristics
Elderly, Post-Conviction Detention [jail or prison], Pre-Existing Health Conditions, Significant Criminal History
Release Granted
Yes
Compassionate Release Case
Yes
Compassionate Release Specific Characteristics
Has a significant criminal history
Case Tracking Number
1:13-cr-00884-HG
MORE CASE INFORMATION
Court Name
D. Haw.
Decision
Motion Granted
Place of Incarceration
Federal Prison
Name of Facility
FCI Big Spring
Legal Authority
First Step Act Exhaustion, First Step Act, 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A)
Release Conditions
15-day quarantine before release; five years of supervised release
Convictions
Conspiracy to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine (in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 841(a)(1), 841(b)(1)(A), and 846)
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.
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.