In Other Media-eg New Statesman, AJE, FP, Georgia, NYT,  Azerbaijan, CSM Click here to contact us     .

By Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC - Guardian UK - Honduras - The Source

SDNY COURTHOUSE, April 30 – These days in the SDNY as in many Federal and state courts there are decisions releasing or detaining inmates amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Many of the denials of release are done orally; many of the releases are done in writing, like this one by SDNY Judge Sidney H. Stein, annotated by Inner City Press herebelow:

"Defendant Jorge Rojas is currently serving an 18-month incarceratory sentence at the Metropolitan Detention Center, Brooklyn, after having pled guilty in January 2019 to one count of possession with intent to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin in violation of 21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1) and (b)(1)(A)." 

 There are some who might question an 18-month sentence for one kilo of heroin. This week Inner City Press covered the case of a man who pled guilty to 1.5 kilos of crack cocaine in the Bronx in the 1990s - and got a life sentence. More on that soon.

"Rojas suffers from a number of serious medical conditions that place him at high risk of severe medical consequences should he contract COVID-19. On March 25, 2020, defense counsel filed a request with the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) outlining Rojas’s exceptional circumstances and seeking defendant’s transfer to home confinement for the balance of his incarceratory sentence. (ECF No. 41.) On April 6, 1 2020, Rojas moved this Court for compassionate release pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 3582... In a letter dated April 28, 2020, the government conceded that Rojas has exhausted his administrative remedies since thirty days have now elapsed without a final determination from the BOP. (See ECF No. 48 at 1.) The Court concurs."  

Some would ask, Why can't the BOP at least rule in 30 days?   Then the money quote:

"Turning to the merits of Rojas’s motion, the government has elected not to oppose Rojas’s request. (ECF No. 48 at 1–2.) Indeed, several compelling reasons weigh in favor of Rojas’s release. First, Rojas has served the majority of the incarceratory portion of his sentence, and has approximately six months left to serve. (Id. at 1.) Second, although Rojas was convicted of a serious crime, the offense involved non-violent conduct (see Presentence Investigation Report (PSR) ¶¶ 7–20, ECF No. 29), and the government agrees that Rojas currently poses no danger to the community (ECF No. 48 at 1). Rojas’s lack of criminal history further supports this conclusion: apart from this conviction, Rojas has a single 17-year-old misdemeanor conviction on his record. (PSR ¶ 37.) Finally, Rojas suffers from serious medical conditions, including hypertension, acute pericarditis, and diabetes, which are extensively documented in the record. (See, e.g., PSR ¶ 57; June 20, 2019 Tr. at 18; Def. Mot. at 2; ECF No. 46; Def. Letters filed by email on Apr. 13 and Apr. 16, 2020.)"  

Functionally, the decision could have ended with, The government does not oppose. But now the Order:

"Accordingly, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that: 1. Rojas’s motion for compassionate release is granted as unopposed; 2. Rojas’s sentence of incarceration is reduced to time served pursuant to 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A); 3. Rojas shall be released from BOP custody, effective immediately; 4. Rojas is hereby placed on supervised release, subject to the conditions of supervised release set forth in the judgment dated June 21, 2019. (See Judgment, ECF No. 38.) In addition to those conditions, Rojas shall serve the balance of his incarceratory sentence—Rojas’s projected release date from the BOP is November 16, 2020—in 24-hour home incarceration enforced by location monitoring technology at an address approved by his Probation Officer. Upon release, Rojas is directed to go directly to Jacobi Hospital to be tested for COVID-19. If he tests positive, he will move into his late father’s two-bedroom apartment at the address set forth in defense counsel’s April 28, 2020 letter, where he will reside with his nephew and observe proper quarantine protocol. If he tests negative, he will reside with his mother at the address set forth in  2  defense counsel’s April 28, 2020 letter. Rojas may only leave his residence for necessary medical services. All other leave from the residence must be approved by Probation; 5. The location monitoring equipment shall be installed no later than 14 days after release; 6. If approved by Probation, Rojas is permitted to self-install the location monitoring equipment selected by Probation under the direction and instruction of Probation; 7. Rojas must obtain a smartphone with videoconferencing capabilities within two weeks of his release for remote/virtual monitoring by Probation."

   Big business for Apple iPhones. Or is this also open for Andoid? The case is US v. Rojas, 18-cr-627 (Stein).

***

Your support means a lot. As little as $5 a month helps keep us going and grants you access to exclusive bonus material on our Patreon page. Click here to become a patron.

Feedback: Editorial [at] innercitypress.com
SDNY Press Room 480, front cubicle
500 Pearl Street, NY NY 10007 USA

Mail: Box 20047, Dag Hammarskjold Station NY NY 10017

Reporter's mobile (and weekends): 718-716-3540

Other, earlier Inner City Press are listed here, and some are available in the ProQuest service, and now on Lexis-Nexis.

 Copyright 2006-2020 Inner City Press, Inc. To request reprint or other permission, e-contact Editorial [at] innercitypress.com for