Fate of Inmates Released During Pandemic Still Unclear
Thousands of federal inmates released to home confinement during the pandemic are facing an uncertain future as the Biden administration stays quiet on whether to send them back to prison at the end of the emergency period.
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Thousands of federal inmates released to home confinement during the pandemic are facing an uncertain future as the Biden administration stays quiet on whether to send them back to prison at the end of the emergency period, reports The Hill. About 4,000 people are still on home confinement under the CARES Act, the pandemic relief bill passed by Congress in March 2020. The bill authorized the U.S. Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to transfer prisoners to home confinement in an effort to reduce the nation’s massive incarcerated population and lessen the health risks at correctional facilities.
A week before the end of the Trump administration in January, the Justice Department issued a legal memo saying those transferred to home confinement would have to report back to prison whenever the pandemic is declared over. With a new rise in COVID-19 cases across the country, it’s unlikely the pandemic will be declared over any time soon. But as it currently stands, thousands will have to return to prison when it ends and the Biden administration has not offered any public guidance on whether that could change.
