The court granted a motion for compassionate release. The individual had many pre-existing health conditions putting him at higher risk, especially diabetes and hypertension, and had served 14 months of his 46-month sentence. The court noted that despite the lack of a confirmed case at the individual's facility, due to BOP's lack of testing and COVID's overall high frequency of asymptomatic carriers, "[i]f the Court waits to act until the BOP confirms its first case of COVID-19 at Lewisburg, it may be too late for vulnerable inmates like Mr. Pabon." Id. at *5.
United States v. Pabon, No. 17-cr-00165, 2020 WL 2112265 (E.D. Pa. May 4, 2020)
DETAILS
Decision
Date
5/4/2020
Practice Area
Criminal (Federal Charges)
Relief Requested
Preliminary Injunction (PI), Release
Type of Court
Federal District Court
Location
Pennsylvania
Type of Case
Individual
Case Characteristics
Elderly, Immigrant Detention, Low-Level Offenses, Parole or Probation Violations, 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, Only served a small portion of their sentence (less than 33%)
Case Tracking Number
17-cr-00165
MORE CASE INFORMATION
Court Name
E.D. Pa.
Decision
Motion Granted
Place of Incarceration
Federal Prison
Name of Facility
Lewisburg Camp (minimum security camp adjacent to US Penitentiary Lewisburg)
Legal Authority
Procedural Due Process (both 14th and 5th Amendments), Substantive Due Process - Punitive Detention (both 14th and 5th Amendments)
Legal Authority
First Step Act Exhaustion, First Step Act, 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A), § 2241 Habeas
Release Conditions
Home confinement & location monitoring until original scheduled release date (June 6, 2022); Otherwise supervised release of 5 years as sentenced just begins now; Must self-quarantine after release for 14 days
Convictions
Aiding and abetting attempted possession with intent to distribute a mixture & substance containing a detectable amount of cocaine
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., Other, Individual was not yet in BOP custody - exhaustion was waived because administrative remedies were unavailable
Organization Legal Filings Templates and Decisions
Louis T. Savino and Associates; Schatz & Steinberg PC
Attorney Email Posted on Site
No
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.
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