Justice Department ends limiting compassionate release in plea deals after NPR story
The Justice Department is directing prosecutors to stop limiting peoples' rights to seek compassionate release from prison in plea deals, a practice that advocates called cruel.
The Justice Department is directing prosecutors to stop limiting defendants' ability to seek compassionate release in most federal plea agreements, after advocates criticized the practice as cruel and against the intent of Congress.DOJ officials handed down the order a month , which curtailed peoples' ability to petition for release from prison because of severe illness or other extraordinary circumstances. That story drew the attention of Attorney General Merrick Garland and pledged to fix the issue.
