In granting the early release of a medically vulnerable felon from prison, U.S. District Judge Anita Brody of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania said that prisons are "tinderboxes for infectious disease" that could exacerbate the coronavirus pandemic.

Brody's decision to release inmate Jeremy Rodriguez—who has served 17 years of a 20-year sentence for drug and firearm charges—comes after several of her peers on the federal bench have approved similar requests in a short span of time under the "compassionate release" statute.

According to Brody's Wednesday opinion, Rodriguez has diabetes, liver abnormalities and high blood pressure, putting him at increased severe health consequences should he contract COVID-19. Rodriguez said that he is also already a year away from being eligible for home confinement.

Brody pointed to reports of higher COVID-19-related hospitalization rates among diabetics.

"These statistics—which focus on the non-prison population—become even more concerning when considered in the prison context. Prisons are tinderboxes for infectious disease," Brody said. "The question whether the government can protect inmates from COVID-19 is being answered every day, as outbreaks appear in new facilities. Two inmates have already tested positive for COVID-19 in the federal detention center in Elkton—the place of Rodriguez's incarceration."

She continued, "After examining the law, holding oral argument, and evaluating all the evidence that has been presented, I reach the inescapable conclusion that Mr. Rodriguez must be granted 'compassionate release.'"

Rodriguez is represented by Mira Baylson of Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld in Philadelphia, who in a statement Wednesday said that the criminal justice community has closely watched compassionate release cases during the pandemic.

"A granting of compassionate release in most instances is exceedingly rare, which makes the judge's finding in this case—that prisoners like Mr. Rodriguez who are at greater risk of morbidity from the virus and who meet other criteria are therefore eligible for compassionate release—hugely significant. I expect that this decision will resonate in other cases and courts across the country," Baylson said.

Similar rulings have appeared in federal courts across the country, including in the neighboring Middle District of Pennsylvania.

Harrisburg-based U.S. District Judge John Jones III on Tuesday ordered the release of 13 inmates currently being held in custody by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement at three facilities across the state. Many of the prisoners suffered from health complications, including diabetes and suppressed immune systems, and in his 25-page opinion, Jones said the facilities were "plainly not equipped" to protect them from potentially fatal exposure to COVID-19.

"While this deficiency is neither intentional nor malicious, should we fail to afford relief to petitioners we will be a party to an unconscionable and possibly barbaric result," Jones said. "If we are to remain the civilized society we hold ourselves out to be, it would be heartless and inhumane not to recognize petitioners' plight. And so we will act."