The defendant sought release pending sentencing on his violations of supervised release conditions following a previous conviction. The court denied the motion, reasoning that the defendant's repeated supervised release violations in the past posed a risk of nonappearance if released. The court also held that the defendant's motion was speculative and unreasonable, as his place of detention had not seen COVID-19 cases and had implemented procedures to mitigate the risk of an outbreak. The court further commented that the COVID-10 pandemic was not a "'get out of jail free' card," and that release the defendant, in light of his past infractions, may pose greater COVID-19 risks to others.
United States v. Winchester, No. 1:18-cr-00301, 2020 WL 1515683 (M.D.N.C. Mar. 30, 2020)
DETAILS
Decision
Date
3/30/2020
Practice Area
Criminal (State Charges)
Relief Requested
Release
Type of Court
Federal District Court
Location
North Carolina
Type of Case
Individual
Case Characteristics
Parole or Probation Violations, Pretrial Detention [jail]
Release Granted
No
Compassionate Release Case
No
Case Tracking Number
1:18-cr-00301-TDS
MORE CASE INFORMATION
Court Name
M.D.N.C.
Decision
Motion Denied
Place of Incarceration
Local / County Jail
Name of Facility
Guilford County Detention Center
Legal Authority
Bail Reform Act, Bail Pending Sentence or Appeal, 18 U.S.C. § 3143, Other, Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure 32.1 and 46
Convictions
Past convictions: possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 922(k); communicating threats, carrying a concealed gun, and resisting a public officer (all on separate occasions)
Case Status
Decision Made
COVID-19 Positive or Symptomatic
No
Charges
Multiple violations of supervised release
COVID-19 in Jail Prison or Detention Center
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.
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.