Opinion
12 CR 859(VM)
02-02-2021
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, v. RUBEN RESTREPO-HOYAS, Defendant.
DECISION AND ORDER VICTOR MARRERO, U.S.D.J. :
On September 12, 2014, the Court sentenced defendant Ruben Restrepo-Hoyas ("Restrepo-Hoyas") to the mandatory minimum of 120 months' imprisonment following his plea of guilty to one count of conspiring to distribute one kilogram or more of heroin in violation of 21 U.S.C. §§ 846 and 841(b)(1)(A). (See Sentencing Tr., Dkt. No. 303.) Restrepo-Hoyas is currently serving his sentence at Moshannon Valley Correctional Center ("MVCC").
By letter dated December 10, 2020 and received by the Court on January 11, 2021, Restrepo-Hoyas moved the Court for immediate compassionate release under 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1) (the "Motion"). (See Attached Letter.) For the reasons set forth below, the Court GRANTS the Motion.
Restrepo-Hoyas argues that his Motion should be granted for three principal reasons. First, Restrepo-Hoyas contends that his health and age put him at greater risk of serious illness should he contract COVID-19. Restrepo-Hoyas is sixty- seven years old and has serious medical conditions, including a heart attack suffered in 2016, chronic heart conditions, glaucoma, and high cholesterol. Second, Restrepo-Hoyas argues that his release is warranted because he has served almost 90% of his statutory sentence. Lastly, he contends that he is at little risk of recidivism based on his age and status as a deportable alien. Restrepo-Hoyas asks this Court to reduce his sentence to time served so that he can be released into the custody of immigration authorities and deported to his native Colombia.
At the outset, the Court notes that Restrepo-Hoyas has satisfied Section 3582(c)(1)(A)'s exhaustion requirement. Restrepo-Hoyas petitioned officials at his facility for compassionate release and was found ineligible under BOP guidelines due to his status as a deportable alien. (See Motion at 11 (citing BOP Program Statement 50.50).) The MVCC acting Director of Operations, Angela Dunbar, noted Restrepo-Hoyas "exhausted all of [his] Administrative Remedies." (Id.)
The BOP guidelines are not binding on the Court, and Restrepo-Hoyas's status as a deportable alien does not render him ineligible for compassionate release under Section 3582(c)(1). See United States v. Juarez-Parra, No. 11 CR 0125, 2020 WL 5645703, at *3 (D.N.M. Sept. 22, 2020). --------
To grant a sentence reduction under 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1), the Court must find that "extraordinary and compelling reasons warrant such a reduction." Under this provision, courts are authorized "to consider the full slate of extraordinary and compelling reasons that an imprisoned person might bring before [the court] in motions for compassionate release." United States v. Brooker, 976 F.3d 228, 237 (2d Cir. 2020). Here, the Court is persuaded that Restrepo-Hoyas has demonstrated "extraordinary and compelling reasons" that warrant his release.
Due to his underlying medical conditions and age, Restrepo-Hoyas is at an increased risk of severe illness should he contract COVID-19. Most notably, Restrepo-Hoyas suffered a heart attack in 2016, which greatly increases his risk of serious illness or death. See generally Jesus Alvarez-Garcia et al., Prognostic Impact of Prior Heart Failure in Patients Hospitalized with COVID-19, 76 J. Am. C. Cardiology 2334 (2020). In addition, Restrepo-Hoyas is presently being treated for various chronic heart conditions related to his heart failure, including coronary artery disease, a condition that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said exposes afflicted individuals to "increased risk of severe illness." See Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): People With Certain Medical Conditions, Ctrs. for Disease Control and Prevention, https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/need-extra-precautions/people-with-medical-conditions.html (last updated Dec. 29, 2020). Moreover, Restrepo-Hoyas -- although not in the highest risk range due to his age -- is at increased risk because he is sixty-seven years old. See Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19): Older Adults, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/need-extra-precautions/older-adults.html (last updated Dec. 13, 2020).
The Court also finds that the detention conditions at MVCC -- where Restrepo-Hoyas sleeps in a dormitory style room with approximately seventy other men (see Motion at 3) -- render COVID-19 precautions such as social distancing practically impossible. See United States v. Juarez-Parra, 11 CR 125, 2020 WL 5645703, at *3 (D.N.M. Sept. 22, 2020) (noting that the same conditions at MVCC made the court "reluctant to wait for a publicized outbreak at [MVCC] before recognizing the danger posed to [defendant] given his many underlying medical conditions"). Thus, although MVCC does not presently have a great number of COVID-19 cases, Restrepo-Hoyas is nonetheless more susceptible to the spread of the virus given the conditions of his detention.
As a result of this combination of his detention conditions, age, and underlying medical conditions, the Court is persuaded that Restrepo-Hoyas has demonstrated "extraordinary and compelling" circumstances warranting his release. See, e.g., United Stats v. Bass, 462 F. Supp. 3d 176, 187-88 (N.D.N.Y. 2020)(noting compassionate release was warranted upon finding underlying heart conditions combined with prison conditions); United States v. Bess, 455 F. Supp. 3d 53, 64 (W.D.N.Y. 2020)(finding the same with respect to coronary artery disease); Woodard v. United States, 469 F. Supp. 3d 499, 503 (E.D. Va. 2020)(history of heart attacks); United States v. Dunlap, No. 17 CR 207, 2020 WL 5231359, at *3 (D.D.C. Sept. 2, 2020)(heart abnormality and chest pain); United States v. Al-Jumail, 459 F. Supp. 3d 857, 864-65 (E.D. Mich. May 12, 2020) (coronary artery disease).
Section 3582(c)(1) also requires the Court to "consider[] the factors set forth in Section 3553(a) to the extent they are applicable." 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A). The Court finds that a reduction of Restrepo-Hoyas's term of imprisonment is consistent with the Section 3553(a) factors. In particular, the Court notes that Restrepo-Hoyas has served almost 90% of his statutory term for a nonviolent offense and is slated for release in November of this year. Given the nature of Restrepo-Hoyas's offense and the short amount of time left to be served, "concerns that he must serve his full sentence to ensure respect for the law, effect general deterrence, and prevent sentence disparities are mitigated." Bass, 462 F. Supp. 3d at 190; see also United States v. Molina Acevado, 18 Cr. 365, 2020 WL 3182770, at *4 (S.D.N.Y. June 15, 2020) (finding the Section 3553(a) factors satisfied where "Defendant was convicted of a nonviolent crime, has served the majority of a sentence that balances the seriousness of his criminal conduct and his acceptance of responsibility"); United States v. Levy, No. 16 CR 270, 2020 WL 2393837, at *7 (E.D.N.Y. May 12, 2020)(noting that forcing the defendant to serve out the small remainder of his term in pandemic conditions "would be to require a sentence that is greater than necessary to achieve the purposes of sentencing"). And given Restrepo-Hoyas's age, he poses little risk of recidivism. See Kim Steven Hunt et al., U.S. Sentencing Comm'n, The Effects of Aging on Recidivism Among Federal Offenders 3 (2017). Moreover, because Restrepo-Hoyas will be released to immigration authorities and deported upon his release from prison, his release poses essentially no danger to the community. E.g., United States v. Reyes-De La Rosa, No. 18 CR 55, 2020 WL 3799523, at *4 (S.D. Tex. July 7, 2020). The Court is therefore persuaded that Restrepo-Hoyas's release is consistent with the aims of Section 3553(a).
I. ORDER
Accordingly, for the reasons stated above, it is hereby
ORDERED, that the motion by defendant Ruben Restrepo-Hoyas ("Restrepo-Hoyas") for compassionate release under 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1) is hereby GRANTED; and it is further
ORDERED, that Restrepo-Hoyas be released into the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement pursuant to his detainer for removal to Colombia.
SO ORDERED.
Dated: New York, New York
2 February 2021
/s/_________
Victor Marrero
U.S.D.J.
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