2 Sacramento men released from ICE custody by judge ruling on coronavirus risk

Two Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainees are returning home to Sacramento after a federal judge ordered their release from custody due to their risk of contracting severe illness from the coronavirus.

Charles Joseph and Gennady Lavrus of Sacramento were among four men ordered released by U.S. District Court Judge Maxine Chesney, of the Northern District of California.

Joseph and Gennady, along with Salomon Medina Calderon and J Elias Solorio Lopez, all have underlying medical conditions that put them as heightened risk from COVID-19 while they remain in custody, Judge Chesney found.

Joseph has asthma requiring the use of an inhaler, while Gennady is diabetic and requires regular insulin injections.

Medina Calderon, too, is diabetic and nearly blind, while Solorio Lopez has a history of hypertension and polycistic kidney disease, according to court documents.

The judge found that four other petitioners for release had not clearly demonstrated a medical condition that places them at higher risk of severe illness from COVID-19.

Chesney noted in the order that COVID-19 infections “are rapidly increasing in the United States, including California, and, when introduced into a confined space, such as a nursing home, a cruise ship, and, recently, a Navy aircraft carrier, it can rapidly spread. Indeed, it has quickly spread in a number of jails and prisons.”

The judge cited evidence that detainees are unable to effectively social distance while in custody, and that they had not been provided with masks.

The release marks a legal victory for the American Civil Liberties Union, which was among the groups advocating on behalf of the detainees.

“Social distancing is the order of the day everywhere but in the cramped confines of prisons. ICE’s abysmal response to COVID-19 — including its intransigent refusal to heed public health experts and release as many detainees as necessary—violates the Constitution,” wrote Jordan Wells, staff attorney for the ACLU of Southern California. “Worse, it risks human life and threatens to exacerbate the pandemic.”

The news was welcomed by Joseph’s wife, Shelly Clements, who said in a statement that, “Immigration detention is unnecessary generally, but now with COVID it is putting people at risk. I feel blessed that my husband is coming home.”

This story was originally published April 9, 2020 at 4:54 PM.