SUMTERVILLE, Fla. — A source close to the family of former U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown has confirmed that Brown has been released from federal prison to home confinement amid COVID-19 concerns.
Pastor Kelvin Cobaris, who accompanied Brown when she first surrendered at Federal Corrections Institution Coleman in January 2018, said she is on her way back home to Jacksonville.
Corrine Brown released from Federal Prison, Bishop Kelvin Cobaris spoke to her moments ago" It was a relief, to make sure she is safe at home. The family is asking for privacy as they reunite and get her settled in." @ActionNewsJax https://t.co/BidGDkm3KV pic.twitter.com/j1BXxAZz1V
— Paige Kelton (@PaigeANjax) April 22, 2020
Earlier this month, Brown and her attorneys filed an “Emergency Motion for Compassionate Release,” which stated that she has several ailments, including “hypertension, thyroid removed, diabetes, heart murmur, acid reflux, sleep apnea and cataracts.”
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The next day, Brown withdrew her emergency motion for compassionate release.
According to the motion to withdraw, it appears Brown and her attorneys wanted to obtain further documentation of her health issues, with the motion stating, “it would be of assistance to the court for Brown to obtain documentation and records to better support her assertions, and when she has done so, if necessary, will then refile the motion with proper supporting documentation.”
In January, the U.S. Court of Appeals upheld Brown’s federal fraud convictions.
Brown went to trial in Jacksonville and was found guilty in May 2017 on 18 of 22 charges. She surrendered for her five-year prison sentence on January 29, 2018.
Brown has served her sentence at Federal Corrections Institution Coleman’s minimum-security satellite camp in Sumterville. Her convictions represent both the fraud scheme and filing false tax returns and financial disclosures. Prosecutors had sought up to nine years in prison for Brown.
Her former chief of staff, Ronnie Simmons, surrendered January 8, 2018 for his four-year sentence at Federal Corrections Institution Cumberland’s minimum-security satellite camp in Maryland.
Co-conspirator Carla Wiley was released from Federal Prison Camp Alderson in West Virginia on June 5, 2019.
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