Wayne County Jail COVID-19 releases include violent criminals

Detroit — When a Wayne County judge announced eight months ago that he would begin releasing jail inmates in response to the coronavirus outbreak, he said people accused of violent crimes likely would stay behind bars.

But since the COVID-related releases began in March, concerns about the virus have prompted Wayne Circuit Judge Timothy Kenny to free at least 35 Wayne County Jail inmates who were accused or convicted of violent crimes, according to a Detroit News review of jail records.

Among those released: four men who were convicted of criminal sexual assault, and 14 others who were convicted of assault. One of the convicted sex offenders is back in jail after prosecutors say he got out and raped three women at knifepoint.

Dozens of other jail inmates who currently are charged with or were convicted of nonviolent crimes, but who have had previous violent convictions, also were released because of COVID-19, according to records obtained through the Freedom of Information Act.

Kenny has not returned phone calls seeking comment. In March, the judge told The News he didn't plan to release anyone accused of committing violent crimes.

"Those (jail inmates) who are charged with serious, violent felonies, who were not given a bond or able to post bond, their circumstance is unlikely to change," said Kenny, adding inmates accused of domestic violence also would likely stay in jail.

But between March and September, records show Kenny freed at least seven Wayne County Jail inmates who were convicted of domestic violence and were either serving out their sentences in the jail or awaiting transport to prison.

In one of those cases, Kenny released a man after he'd pleaded guilty to domestic violence and assaulting a pregnant woman — a crime that occurred while the man was on probation for a previous felonious assault, a case that Kenny also presided over. The man also had a drug conviction and multiple probation violations on his record.

Detroit police Chief James Craig said the release of violent criminals likely is contributing to a significant spike in homicides and nonfatal shootings this year.

"This isn't just happening in Detroit," he said. "Cities across the country have seen violent crime go up. It's not rocket science — when you let violent criminals out of jail, you run the risk of having more violent crime. If anyone thinks releasing these violent offenders back into the community isn't having an effect on crime, they're sorely mistaken."

This year, Detroit's homicides have increased by about 20%, while nonfatal shootings are up about 50%. Several other large cities across the country have seen even higher increases in violent crime. Craig and other police officials nationwide blame myriad issues, including bail reform, disrespect for officers and COVID-related jail releases for the increases.

Others dispute the notion that coronavirus-related jail releases are causing crime to spike. Advocates for inmates say the releases are crucial to the health of millions of people, most of whom are awaiting trial and are presumed innocent.

"The fact is there's just no way to protect people in the Wayne County Jail," said Casey Rocheteau, spokeswoman for the Detroit Justice Center, which was one of several organizations that filed a lawsuit against Wayne County calling for inmates to be released to avoid COVID-19 infection.

"This is a deadly, contagious virus, and nobody deserves to die just because they're locked up," Rocheteau said. "I understand having a handful of folks get out of jail who may or may not do harm is a scary thought for some people, but they have families who don’t want to see them die just because they may have made mistakes."

But Craig, who in March contracted COVID-19, said only nonviolent criminals should be released.

"This virus is serious, and if someone is involved in a nonviolent crime, and they don't have a history of violence, I totally agree we should let them out of jail," he said. "But violent criminals? Come on, now."

Officials from the Wayne County sheriff's and prosecutor's offices make recommendations about which inmates should be released, although the final decisions are made by Kenny. Most of those released have been required to wear tethers, county records show.

Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy and Chief of Wayne County Jails Robert Dunlap both said they are not recommending the release of violent criminals.

"The only way a person gets released is they served their time, or they’re released by court order," Dunlap said. "You’d have to talk to the folks making the decisions. I don't recall us recommending any violent criminals be released."

Worthy said she agreed to the release of one allegedly violent criminal, a 65-year-old man whose case was among the 11,000 unattended rape kits found in a Detroit police property room in 2009.

The man, who was awaiting trial on first-degree criminal sexual assault charges, was released April 2 because of his advanced age and health problems, assistant prosecutor Maria Miller said.

"He became terminally ill while incarcerated and it was determined that he should be released," Miller said in an email. "Prosecutor Worthy agreed with his release. There was a court hearing to establish the seriousness of his condition and the appropriateness of his release."

Otherwise, Miller said her office isn't recommending violent criminals be freed.

"Prosecutor Worthy has not agreed to the release of violent criminals because they are a potential danger to the community and themselves," Miller said. "She includes in this category of violent cases domestic violence felony or misdemeanor cases.

"Judge Kenny is ultimately the person determining who will be released. Prosecutor Worthy believes that Judge Kenny has been very responsible about not releasing violent criminals."

"This judge needs to do more diligence when it comes to deciding who gets released," the chief said. "I don't see how you can justify letting someone out who has multiple violent convictions on their record. Then, if the crime rate goes up, people won't be asking the judge about it — they'll come knocking on my door."

Miller said prosecutors look at several criteria before recommending an inmate for release.

"The person must not be likely to reoffend while out and not be a danger to the community or themselves," she said. "Also, medical conditions of the inmates are taken into consideration."

In June, The News sent a Freedom of Information request to the Wayne County Sheriff's Office seeking a list of Wayne County Jail inmates who’d been released because of COVID-19 concerns. But the county only sent information from March 19-April 10.

Officials could not explain why only a few weeks of data was released in response to The News’ request, but a second FOIA seeking a complete list was submitted. The News recently received an updated list of inmates released through Sept. 21, the day the second FOIA request was filed.

Although Craig and other police officials nationwide have attributed recent violent crime increases to... (Read more)

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