A Sick Inmate in New York Is Freed After Suing Over Parole Delay
The New York Times
Steve Coleman was kept for 21 months after his parole date because the state could not find a nursing home placement.
A sick man was released from a New York prison on Friday after suing the state for keeping him long past his parole date.
Steve Coleman, who is 67 and has advanced kidney disease, was granted parole in 2023 after serving 43 years for murder. But he remained incarcerated for 21 more months because the Department of Corrections could not find a nursing home to accommodate his dialysis care.
Experts said that many paroled prisoners across the country are in a similar limbo, stuck inside because their state cannot find them medical care elsewhere. The problem is expected to become more acute as the prison population ages and needs more complex care.
Mr. Coleman sued New York State in August, contending that he should be allowed to leave prison and determine his own medical care. A lower court ruled against him in September, and he appealed. Fourteen medical ethicists had written a letter supporting his release.
The Wende Correctional Facility in upstate New York released him on Friday morning, according to Martha Rayner, a lawyer with the Parole Prep Project, a nonprofit that helps inmates apply for early release.
