govinfo:USCOURTS-ctd-3_19-cr-00276-0

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 
DISTRICT OF CONNECTICUT 
 
 
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 
 
v. 
 
ORLANDO MARTINEZ 
 
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No. 19-cr-276-VLB 
 
 
DECEMBER 29, 2020 
 
 
MEMORANDUM OF DECISION DENYING DEFENDANT’S MOTION FOR 
COMPASSIONATE RELEASE 
 
Before the Court is Defendant, Orlando Martinez’s motion for compassionate 
release filed pro se.  Pro Se Mot., Dkt. 697.  Defense counsel for Mr. Martinez  filed 
a supplemental motion on his behalf  along with Mr. Martinez ’s medical records.  
Suppl. to Mot., Dkt. 720; Medical Records, Dkt. 724.  The Government filed a 
response.  Response, Dkt. 743.  Upon consideration, the Court denies the motion 
for the following reasons.  
I. BACKGROUND  
A. Case Background 
On October 29, 2019, Mr. Martinez  was arrested on a criminal complaint 
charging conspiracy to possess  with intent to distribute 100 grams or more of 
heroin.  Compl., Dkt. 1.  That day he appeared before Judge Merriam for an initial 
appearance, where Judge Merriam ordered his detention.  Order of Detention, Dkt. 
13.  Shortly thereafter, an indictment was entered where a grand jury charged Mr. 
Martinez with conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute heroin 
and fentanyl.  Indictment, Dkt 25. On January 8, 2020, a supersedi ng indictment 
was filed, providing that the foreseeable quantities for Mr. Martinez’s conduct and 
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that of other members of the narcotic conspiracy is 100 grams or more of a mixture 
and substance containing a detectable amount of heroin, and for a mixture a nd 
substance containing a detectable amount of fentanyl.  Superseding Indictment, at 
¶¶ 4, 6.  On February 27, 2020, Mr. Martinez  entered into a plea agreement, where 
he agreed to plea d guilty to Count One of the superseding indictment.  Plea 
Agreement, Dkt. 206.   
A sentencing hearing was scheduled for July 23, 2020.  Prior to the 
sentencing hearing, a pre-sentence investigation report was prepared and filed by 
the Office of Probation.  PSR, Dkt. 301.  With respect to the offense conduct, the 
PSR provides that:  
Orlando Martinez a.k.a. “Bolo,” operated as a bulk redistributor of 
narcotics for the Sosa drug trafficking organization. Specifically, Mr. 
Martinez purchased bulk raw quantities of heroin at the Corner Mini 
Market from Mr. Aybar-Peguero and Mr. Polanco and was intercepted 
on a number of calls over Target Telephone 6 discussing the 
quantities of narcotics being purchased and the amount of money 
owed to Mr. Aybar -Peguero for those narcotics. The substance of 
these intercepted calls and witness testimo ny along with the 
quantities of bundled heroin and fentanyl seized from the Corner Mini 
Market establishes the basis for the quantity allegation against Mr. 
Martinez in Count One. 
 
The parties agree that, from May 2019 to October 2019, the defendant, 
Mr. Martinez knew or reasonably should have foreseen that an object 
of the conspiracy involved the possession with intent to distribute and 
distribution of at least 100 kilograms, but less than 400 kilograms of 
converted drug weight. . . . 
 
During that interview, the defendant admitted to the essential 
elements of the offense as listed in the plea agreement. 
 
PSR at ¶¶ 23–24, 27.   
The PSR also outlines Mr. Martinez ’s prior criminal convictions.  In 
1996, he was convicted of violating a protective order and sentenced to one 
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year in jail, which was suspended, and three years of probation.  Id. at ¶ 42.  
He violated his  probation and was sentenced to one  year in jail to run 
concurrently with a separate offense.  Id.  Also, in 1996, he was convicted of 
altering a pistol ID and possession of narcotics and was sentenced to three 
years in prison for both offenses, which was suspended, and three years of 
probation to run concurrently.  Id. at ¶ 43.  He violated that probati on and 
was sentenced to one  year in jail to run concurrent ly with the above 
probation violation.  Id.  Also, in 1996, he was convicted of assault in the 
third degree and was sentenced to nine -months in jail, suspended, with 
eighteen months of probation.  Id. at ¶ 44.  He violated that probation and 
was sentenced to one  year in j ail to run concurrently with the above 
probation violation sentences.  Id.  Also, in 1996, he was convicted of breach 
of peace and was sentenced to thirty- days in jail.  Id. at ¶ 45.  In 2001, M r. 
Martinez was convicted for the sale of narcotics and was sentenced to sixty-
six months in jail.  Id. at ¶ 47.  In 2006, while on parole for the 2001 conviction, 
he was convicted for the sale of narcotics and sentenced to eighteen months 
in jail.  Id. at ¶ 48.  In 2009, Mr. Martinez  was convicted for possession with 
intent and was sentenced to eight years in jail with seven years of special 
parole.  Id. at ¶ 49.  The underlying offense conduct occurred while he was 
on parole for the 2009 conviction.  Id.  At the time of the PSR, he was wanted 
for a parole violation.  Id.   
This Court sentenced Mr. Martinez to seventy months in the custody 
of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, along with five years of supervised release, 
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and a $100 special assessment.  Judgment, Dkt. 467.  He has been in custody 
since his arrest , approximately fourteen months ago.  Meaning, he has 
served approximately fourteen months of his seventy- month sentence , 
which represents approximately 20% of his sentence served.   
B. Mr. Martinez’s Health  
Mr. Martinez is 52 years old.  PSR at ¶ 63.  He reported having diabetes and 
high blood pressure to the Office of Probation, and indicated he was not receiving 
the proper medication for his diabetes.  Id.  Attached to the supplemental motion 
were medical records, which do indicate that Mr. Martinez  has diabetes and high 
blood pressure.  See Medical Records.  However, the records do not show whether 
he is or is not receiving medication to treat these conditions , whether these 
conditions are well controlled, nor do the records show  the severity of these 
conditions.  See id.   Mr. Martinez has not provided the Court with any a ffidavit or 
the like explaining why  the medical records do not include this information or 
supplementing the records with his first hand knowledge.   
His medical records do show that he tested positive for COVID-19 on October 
20, 2020.  Medical Records at 2–5.  Though defense counsel states that Mr. Martinez 
“suffered greatly with the condition” and still has “ breathing problems”; Suppl. 
Mot. at 2; the medical records provided do not support those statements.  The 
records show that on October 20, 2020, the day in which he tested positive with 
COVID-19, he had a low fever of 99.7, a cough, and a runny nose.  Medical Recordss 
at 6.  The record  shows that that same day he did not have shortness of breath, 
fatigue, sore throat, headache, new loss of taste or smell, muscle/body aches, 
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nausea/vomiting, or diarrhea.  Id.  Then on November 21, 2020, the records show 
he was “asymptomatic” and his chief complaint was difficulty seeing , requiring 
glasses.  Id. at 1.  The evidence on the record does not support Mr. Martinez claim 
that he “suffered greatly.”  
C. Wyatt  
Mr. Martinez is being detained at the Donald W. Wyatt Detention Facility in 
Central Falls, Rhode Island.  The Judges of the District Court receive periodic 
updates from the United States Marshal Service and the Warden of Wyatt as to the 
current status of COVID-19 infection within the facility.  As of the latest update on 
December 22, 2020, there are currently no active COVID-19 infections amongst the 
detainees.  
II. LEGAL STANDARD  
Under the First Step Act of 2018, federal prisoners may petition courts 
directly for reduction of their sentences, and judges may grant such requests if 
“extraordinary and compelling reasons” support reduction. See  First Step Act of 
2018, Section 603(b), Pub. L. 115- 391, 132 Stat. 5194 (2018) (amending 18 U.S.C. § 
3582(c)(1)(A)(i)) (“First Step Act”). 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A) now authorizes a court 
to modify a term of imprisonment: 
upon motion of the Director of the Bureau of Prisons, or upon motion 
of th e defendant after the defendant has fully exhausted all 
administrative rights to appeal a failure of the Bureau of Prisons to 
bring a motion on the defendant’s behalf or the lapse of 30 days from 
the receipt of such a request by the warden of the defendant’s facility, 
whichever is earlier. 
 
Where this exhaustion requirement is met, a court may reduce the defendant’s 
sentence if it finds that “extraordinary and compelling reasons warrant such a 
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reduction” and “such a reduction is consistent with applicable policy statements 
issued by the Sentencing Commission.”   Id.  The Court must also consider “the 
factors set forth in [18 U.S.C. §] 3553(a) to the extent that they are applicable.”  Id. 
“The defendant bears the burden of showing that she is entitled to a sent ence 
reduction.” United States v. Gagne, No. 3:18-CR-242 (VLB), 2020 WL 1640152, at *3 
(D. Conn. Apr. 2, 2020). 
III. ANALYSIS 
a. Exhaustion  
Mr. Martinez states that on November 13, 2020, he requested compassionate 
release to the Bureau of Prisons, which was denied on November 16, 2020. The 
Government concedes that Mr. Martinez  has effectively exhausted his 
administrative remedies.  The Court finds that Mr . Martinez  has exhausted his 
administrative remedies and thus this motion is properly before the Court.  
b. Extraordinary and Compelling Reasons 
At Congress’s direction, the U.S. Sentencing Commission promulgated 
guidance on the circumstances constituting “ex traordinary and compelling” 
reasons. See 28 U.S.C. § 944(t); U.S.S.G. 1B1.13. The U.S. Sentencing Commission 
has not updated its guidance since the enactment of the First Step Act. See 
U.S.S.G. 1B1.1 (Nov. 1, 2018). The Application Notes to U.S.S.G. § 1B1. 13 explain 
that a defendant’s medical condition may constitute “extraordinary and 
compelling” circumstances when:  
(A) Medical Condition of the Defendant.--  
(i) The defendant is suffering from a terminal illness (i.e., a 
serious and advanced illness with an end of life trajectory). A 
specific prognosis of life expectancy (i.e., a probability of death 
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within a specific time period) is not required. Examples include 
metastatic solid -tumor cancer, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis 
(ALS), end-stage organ disease, and advanced dementia.  
[or]  
(ii) The defendant is--  
(I) suffering from a serious physical or medical condition,  
(II) suffering from a serious functional or cognitive 
impairment, or  
(III) experiencing deteriorating physical or mental health 
because of the aging process,  
that substantially diminishes the ability of the defendant to 
provide self -care within the environment of a correctional 
facility and from which he or she is not expected to recover.  
 
U.S.S.G. 1B1.13, Commentary Application Note 1(A).  Any “other” “extraordinary 
and compelling reason” may also justify relief.  Id. at Commentary Application Note 
1(D).  
“[T]he mere existence of COVID-19 in society and the possibility that it might 
spread to a particular prison alone cannot independently justify compassionate 
release.”  United States v. Raia, 954 F.3d 594, 597 (3d Cir. 2020).  But this Court and 
others have recognized that an inmate’s chronic medical condition that elevates 
his risk of becoming seriously ill from COVID-19 according to the CDC may be such 
an extraordinary and compelling reason.  See United States v. Sanchez, No. 18-CR-
00140-VLB-11, 2020 WL 1933815, at *5 (D. Conn. Apr. 22, 2020) (collecting cases).  
The Court finds that based  on the medical records submitted Mr. Martinez 
suffers from type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure.  The CDC guidance explains 
that those with type 2 diabetes “are at increased risk of severe illness from the 
virus that causes COVID -19” and those with high blood pressure “might be at an 
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increased risk.”1  The Government concedes that having type 2 diabetes does put 
Mr. Martinez at increased risk.   
Mr. Martinez has recently been infected with, and appears to have recovered 
from, COVID-19.  The medical r ecords indicate that, though he was at risk for a 
severe course of the disease, Mr. Martinez had mild symptoms.  
The CDC explains that “Cases of reinfection of COVID-19 have been reported 
but are rare.  In general, reinfection means a person was infected (got sick) once, 
recovered, and then later became infected again. Based on what we know from 
similar viruses, some reinfections are expected.”2  Neither party has provided any 
clear information one way or another as to whether Mr. Martinez  is at  risk of 
reinfection or would suffer a more severe course of the disease than the mild case 
he has already suffered. 
The inmate population at Wyatt are seeing significantly less infection while 
incarcerated than the general population, which is current ly experiencing a 
significant surge in infections. 3 Consequently Mr. Martinez faces a greater 
exposure to COVID-19 in the general population than at Wyatt.  
 
1 People with Certain Medical Conditions , CDC.Gov., available at 
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/need-extra-precautions/people-with-
medical-conditions.html (last visited Dec. 21, 2020).  
2 When You Can be Around Others After You Had or Likely Had COVID -19, 
CDC.Gov., available at https: //www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/if-you-are-
sick/end-home-isolation.html (last visited Dec. 21, 2020).  
3 The seven-day average positive rate in Connecticut as of December 15, 2020 was 
6.48%.  See CT Data Collaborative, Tableau Public, available at: 
https://public.tableau.com/profile/connecticut.state.data.center#!/vizhome/Connec
ticutCOVID-19CaseTracking/CTdataCollaborativeCOVID-19 (last visited Dec. 21, 
2020).    
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Based on this record, the Court finds Mr. Martinez has failed to meet his 
burden of showing he is at material risk of reinfection or that he would suffer a 
severe case of COVID-19 if he was re-infected.    
c. Section 3553(a) Factors  
Though the Court has found that Mr. Martinez  has failed to establish an 
extraordinary and compelling reason for release, the Court also finds that he has 
failed to establish the § 3553(a) factors weigh in favor of a fifty-six-month reduction 
in sentence.  The Court sentenced Mr. Martinez during the COVID -19 pandemic, 
knowing that he had type 2 diabetes and high blood pressure based on an analysis 
of the 3553(a) Factors.   
Since then Mr. Martinez has served a small fraction of his sentence and he 
suffered a relatively mild case of COVID -19. As the Court noted during the 
sentencing less than five months ago, the nature and circumstances of the offense 
and the history and characteristics of Mr. Martinez  warrant a seventy- month 
sentence of incarcerati on.  The seriousness of the offense conduct cannot be 
understated.  Mr. Martinez  has engaged in conduct that he knew was illegal and 
was bad for the people he preyed on, their families and the community.  He has 
lived a life filled with the commission of c rimes that have only been abated by 
periods of incarceration.  He has squandered lenient sentences, supervision, 
opportunities for treatment; all in exchange for selling drugs, poisoning and 
exploiting the sickness of others.  He is an unremitting drug dealer.  The sentence 
reflects the seriousness of the offense, promotes respect for the law, and provides 
a just punishment.  § 3553(a)(2(A).  Mr. Martinez has not persuaded the Court that 
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the fact that he contracted a mild course of COVID -19 and is unlikely to be re -
infected or suffer a severe infection in the future alters the § 3553(a) calculus.  
IV. CONCLUSON 
For the aforementioned reasons, the Court DENIES Mr. Martinez’s motion for 
compassionate release.   
IT IS SO ORDERED.  
___/s/_______________ 
Hon. Vanessa L. Bryant 
United States District Judge 
 
Dated this day in Hartford, Connecticut: December 29, 2020 
 
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