The court denied the individual's request for a temporary release under 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1), as the act only authorized it to reduce a sentence, not temporarily release an individual. The court also denied a sentence reduction under the statute, finding that despite the individual's underlying health risks and an active COVID-19 outbreak at his facility, reducing his sentence by more than 13 years was inconsistent with the sentencing factors of 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a). The court did note that BOP still had the authority to temporarily release the individual.
United States v. Pawlowski, No. 17-cr-00390, 2020 WL 2526523 (E.D. Pa. May 18, 2020)
DETAILS
Decision
Date
5/18/2020
Practice Area
Criminal (Federal Charges)
Relief Requested
Delayed Surrender, Release, Temporary Restraining Order (TRO)
Type of Court
Federal District Court
Location
Pennsylvania
Type of Case
Individual
Case Characteristics
Elderly, Immigrant Detention, Low-Level Offenses, Post-Conviction Detention [jail or prison], Pre-Existing Health Conditions
Release Granted
No
Compassionate Release Case
Yes
Compassionate Release Specific Characteristics
Only served a small portion of their sentence (less than 33%)
Case Tracking Number
17-cr-00390
MORE CASE INFORMATION
Court Name
E.D. Pa.
Decision
Motion Denied
Place of Incarceration
Federal Prison, Federal Medical Center
Name of Facility
FCI Danbury (Connecticut)
Legal Authority
First Step Act Exhaustion, First Step Act, 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A), Other, § 2241 Habeas, § 2254 Habeas, Emergency Application for a Stay of Execution, 28 U.S.C. § 2251
Convictions
Federal program bribery; mail fraud; wire fraud; honest services fraud; Travel Act bribery; conspiracy; making false statements
Case Status
On Appeal
Compassionate Release Exhaustion Holdingsin Federal Case
Other, The court has discretion to waive 30 days when defendant has filed request with the warden
Age: 55; Medication-Related Immunocompromise: Taking antiviral drug for herpes infection (court seemed hesitant to affirm that this would indeed suppress immune system)
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.