Originally published May 5, 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.
A federal court in Georgia dismissed Timothy Edward Comer’s compassionate release motion. He had not given the prison any evidence with his request, and he had turned down a COVID-19 vaccine, which weakened his claim that the virus put him at high risk.
May 5, 2021
United States v. Comer
United States District Court for the Southern District of Georgia, Augusta Division
2021 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 85320
Compassionate release motion dismissed because of a lack of evidence and the inmate’s refusal of a Covid vaccine.
No evidence with his request
Comer asked the prison for compassionate release on May 3, 2020, but never got a response. When the court looked into it, it found there was no response because Comer had not included any evidence with his request.
Because of that, the court could not find that he had exhausted his administrative remedies (that is, properly used the prison’s process first) for the health conditions he claimed: type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure (hypertension) and a “history of heart attacks.”
Refusing the vaccine hurt his case
The court also noted that on March 11, 2021, Comer refused a COVID vaccine offered by the prison. By turning down a chance to greatly lower his risk from COVID-19, he undercut his own claim that he faced a higher risk from the virus.
As one district court put it, a defendant “cannot reasonably expect that prolonging his risk by declining vaccination will be rewarded with a sentence reduction.”
Low COVID risk at his prison
The court also noted that there were no active COVID cases among staff or inmates at Comer’s facility at the time, which also greatly lowered his risk. For these reasons, the court dismissed Comer’s motion for compassionate release.
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