Richard Evans, 74, a former doctor serving a federal prison term on drug charges, was freed last week from a Louisiana lockup on a “compassionate release” as a result of the new First Step Act, NPR reports. The law allows inmates with serious illnesses to make their pleas to a federal judge if the Federal Bureau of Prisons fails to act. Evans took his case to U.S. District Judge Kenneth Hoyt, who found that Evans had presented “extraordinary and compelling reasons” justifying a reduction in his sentence from five years to 22 months. “Without the court process, our client would die in prison,” said Evans’ attorneys. Evans has been diagnosed with a malignant melanoma.
Under the First Step Act, prisoners must demonstrate that their conditions are severe and that the prison system is poorly equipped to treat them. Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM), which has spent years advocating for expanded compassionate release, cited a case in which a prisoner suffering from stage 4 cancer was approved for release, but the inmate died before the order could take effect. “Now, thanks to the First Step Act, when I hear from someone struggling with the compassionate release process, I don’t have to say, ‘I’m sorry,’ ” said FAMM lawyer Mary Price. “Instead, I can say, ‘Let me see if I can find you a lawyer.’ ” Congress created an exception for compassionate release for inmates in 1984, but requests were rarely granted.