Former campaign manager for then-candidate Donald Trump, Paul Manafort is out of prison.
In March 2019, Manafort was sentenced to 7.5 years for tax fraud and conspiracy. According to ABC News and CBS News, on Wednesday, Manafort was granted early release from Loretto federal prison in Pennsylvania due to the novel coronavirus.
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His wife and another family member picked him and took him home where he will serve the remainder of his sentence, per ABC. Manafort had been scheduled to leave prison in November 2024, but his lawyers petitioned the court that the 71-year-old be moved to home confinement, due to his age and health issues including liver disease and respiratory issues.
Back in December, Manafort was hospitalized for a heart condition and in February. he fell ill with influenza and bronchitis. per CBS.
“Even though there are no reported cases of COVID-19 at FCI Loretto at this time, given the growing number of cases in Pennsylvania and increasing challenges in testing inmates and staff potentially exposed to COVID-19, it is only a matter of time before the infection spreads to staff and inmates,” his lawyers wrote in April.
Then “it may be too late to prevent high-risk inmates, such as Mr. Manafort, from contracting the potentially deadly virus.” There remain no known cases of COVID-19 at the prison, per ABC.
This piece was written by Wayne Dupree on May 13, 2020. It originally appeared in WayneDupree.com [2] and is used by permission.