“CAUSING MORE HARM THAN GOOD”: 30 MEMBERS OF CONGRESS URGE ATTORNEY GENERAL GARLAND TO RESCIND OLC MEMO THAT COULD FORCE THOUSANDS BACK TO PRISON
Reps. Bonnie Watson Coleman, Kelly Armstrong, Karen Bass, Jerry Nadler and 26 Others Call on AG Garland. to Reverse Trump-era Memo Requiring Reincarceration of People on Home Confinement
(Washington, D.C.) – Today, a bipartisan coalition of 30 Members of Congress sent Attorney General Merrick Garland a letter urging him to reverse a memo issued by the Office of Legal Counsel in the waning days of the Trump administration that could force thousands back to prison. The memo, issued on January 15, 2021, states that those transferred from federal prison to home confinement due to a CARES Act provision have to return to federal prison after the COVID-19 crisis is deemed over. Today’s letter notes that the OLC memo was “wrong as a matter of law,” as the CARES Act does not require reincarceration, and has the potential to “upend what has been a very successful means of reducing infection rates in federal prisons.” The members urge Attorney General Garland to rescind the memo, and to broadly exercise his authority with respect to elderly and compassionate release.
“These families are living under constant threat because the Department of Justice is deferring to a single memo, offering the opinion of a staffer in the waning days of the Trump administration. We know they have the legal authority to remove this threat, and we believe they have the moral obligation to do it immediately,” said Inimai Chettiar, Federal Director of the Justice Action Network. “There is no public safety rationale for sending these people back to prison. There is no legal rationale for ignoring the clear legislative intent of the CARES Act. And there is no excuse for delay.”
The Biden Administration has the legal authority to address this issue without additional legislation by reversing, revising, or rescinding the memo from the Office of Legal Counsel; issuing additional guidance on home confinement to supersede the memo; or using grants of clemency to commute the prison sentences of those on home confinement.
Today’s letter, organized by Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, is the latest in a series of bipartisan missives urging President Biden and Attorney General Garland to prevent the needless incarceration of thousands of people who are safely completing their sentences on home confinement. Previous outreach has come from Chairman Dick Durbin and Senator Cory Booker, a bipartisan group of 28 members of the House of Representatives, and dozens of groups from across the political spectrum. Chairman Durbin and Ranking Member Chuck Grassley also raised the issue with Bureau of Prisons Director Michael Carvajal during a Judiciary Committee hearing.
***Full Member Letter HERE***