Skip to Content
Network for Public Health Law

Sumba v. Decker

by

Overview

At-Risk Prisoner Release. Sumba v. Decker (U.S. District Court – Southern District of New York): On March 20, 2020, the Legal Aid Society and The Bronx Defenders sued U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in federal court seeking the immediate release of seven individuals in civil immigrant detention. These detainees, by virtue of their age or underlying medical conditions (including aortic valve disease, congestive heart failure, and diabetes), are particularly vulnerable to illness or death if infected with COVID-19. The complaint seeks their immediate release on the grounds that their continued incarceration constitutes “deliberate indifference to the risk of serious medical harm” violating the Fifth and Fourteenth Amendments.  

View all cases in the Judicial Trends in Public Health – April 2, 2020.