COVID-19 Summary: This is a class action complaint requesting declaratory and injunctive relief to prevent infection of those confined in Philadelphia’s Federal Detention Center (“FDC”), as well as writs of habeas corpus to achieve temporary release from FDC for the named petitioners and other detainees at an elevated risk from COVID-19. No outcome yet.
On April 15, 2020, three inmates filed a class-action complaint and petition for writs of habeas corpus in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The petitioners, represented by the Public Interest Law Center and private counsel, sued under 28 U.S.C. § 2241, alleging Fifth and Eighth Amendment violations. Petitioners sought to represent a class consisting of all current and future pretrial detainees, presentenced detainees, and sentenced inmates in custody at Philadelphia's Federal Detention Center ("FDC") during the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. The case was assigned to Judge Anita B. Brody.
According to the petition, there were approximately 1,030 people detained at the FDC, the majority being pretrial detainees. While the FDC had halted social visits and most attorney visitation on March 13, 2020, petitioners alleged that correctional officers came in and out every day without adequate medical screening. Petitioners further alleged that the sporadic use of masks and gloves was insufficient to prevent the spread of the virus, especially because detainees had only limited access to personal hygiene products. The three named petitioners claimed that they were particularly vulnerable because they suffered from underlying conditions that could cause complications if they contracted COVID-19.
Petitioners sought immediate release of vulnerable persons to home confinement, with appropriate precautionary public health and safety measures, and an order requiring respondent to mitigate the serious risk of illness, death, and harm from
COVID-19 to those who remained confined at the FDC. Additionally, they sought the appointment of a Special Master to chair a Coronavirus Release Committee, which would make recommendations on release decisions and mitigation of prison conditions.
The Bureau of Prisons, which runs FDC, filed a motion to dismiss on April 20, 2020, claiming that the court did not have subject-matter jurisdiction over pretrial detainees to entertain the petition and that the petition was meritless. The court authorized the petitioners to engage in limited jurisdictional discovery, which did not include an on-site inspection, to evaluate whether “extraordinary circumstances” justified exercising habeas jurisdiction over the pretrial detainees at the FDC. 2020 WL 1975064.
On May 2, 2020, in light of respondent’s letters stating that FDC staff members had tested positive for COVID-19, Judge Brody entered an order requiring that similar updates be immediately docketed. On May 14, 2020, Judge Brody ordered that if respondent learned that any inmate or staff member had tested positive for COVID-19, respondent had to immediately report that fact to the court.
The Court denied the defendant's motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction on September 15, 2020. The Court relied on Third Circuit precedent in holding that the COVID-19 pandemic satisfied the "extraordinary circumstances" necessary to seek habeas relief.
The Court approved a joint inspection protocol for experts from either side to conduct an inspection of the Federal Detention Center in Philadelphia on October 8, 2020. The inspectors were authorized to inspect the staff entryway, the receiving and discharge areas, and various housing units.
As of February 2021, the parties continue to engage in discovery with defendants supplying updates on ongoing COVID-19 testing and cases among staff members. The case remains ongoing.
Elena Malik - 07/17/2020
Justin Hill - 10/25/2020
Tessa McEvoy - 02/20/2021
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