Originally published March 29, 2021. Statements about the law were updated in October 2026; the box below gives today’s rules.
Outcomes vary. A past result does not predict or guarantee the outcome of any other case.
Diabetes alone may not seem like enough for compassionate release, but it can be an important part of a request. In this case, a federal judge released a man whose type 2 diabetes, obesity and high blood pressure put him at high risk from COVID-19.
Does diabetes warrant compassionate release?
On November 15, 2011, James Scampitilla pleaded guilty to one count of unarmed bank robbery. He was sentenced to 151 months in prison and three (3) years of supervised release. With a release date of August 28, 2020, he filed for compassionate release.
Judge Dan A. Polster granted James J. Scampitilla immediate compassionate release. Scampitilla has Type 2 diabetes mellitus, obesity, and hypertension (high blood pressure). The Centers for Disease Control confirmed that these conditions put him at higher risk of severe complications or death if he caught COVID-19.
Scampitilla had recently been moved from one facility to another and was waiting to be placed in yet another prison. The court noted that COVID-19 was present at the facility where he had been sent.
The court also noted that Scampitilla had made strides in prison, including finishing several certificate programs. He has family willing to take him in after release, and he had less than a year left on his sentence. After weighing all the factors, including his diabetes, the court granted compassionate release.
The court wrote:
The time Scampitilla has served is sufficient punishment, particularly considering the likelihood of severe medical complications or death should he contract COVID-19. The Court sincerely hopes Scampitilla will go forth and live a lawabiding life.
The Court hereby reduces Scampitilla’s sentence to time served, plus up to 10 days in the discretion of BOP to quarantine Scampitilla prior to release. Scampitilla’s term of supervised release remains at three (3) years, subject to the terms imposed at sentencing.
United States v. Scampitilla, 2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 56575
If you want help with a compassionate release request, book a consultation.