Martinez Roman v. Decker

• Court: District Court, S.D. New York
• Decided: June 3, 2020
• Docket: 1:20-cv-03752
• Status: Unknown

Opinion

= mon ey United States Attorney Southern District of New York 86 Chambers Street New York, New York 10007 June 3, 2020

Application granted. VIA ECF SO ORDERED. Honorable John G. Koeltl /s/ John G. Koeltl United States District Judge New York, NY John G. Koeltl Daniel Patrick Moynihan June 3, 2020 US.D.J. United States Courthouse 500 Pearl Street New York, New York 10007 Re: Martinez Roman vy. Decker, et al., 20 Civ. 3752 (JGK) Dear Judge Koeltl: This Office represents the government in the above-referenced immigration habeas matter. The government’s response to the petition is due today. See ECF No. 7. I write respectfully to request permission to file under seal the petitioner’s medical records from the Orange County Jail. Consistent with Section 6 of this Court’s Individual Rules, these documents will be filed under seal on ECF and electronically related to this letter motion. The government respectfully submits that sealing is appropriate notwithstanding the presumption of access discussed by the Second Circuit in Lugosch v. Pyramid Co. of Onondaga, 435 F.3d 110, 119-20 (2d Cir. 2006), in light of the privacy interests of individuals in their medical records. See, e.g., Barnwell vy. FCI Danbury, No. 3:10-CV-01301 (DJS), 2011 WL 5330215, at *5 (D. Conn. Nov. 3, 2011) (noting a rebuttable presumption of openness of court filings, but granting motion to seal in light of federal law’s treatment of such records as confidential pursuant to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA”), Pub. L. 104-191 (1996)). Courts in this District have permitted the sealing of medical records, even if specific details relating to the individual’s health appear on the record. See, e.g., United States v. Needham, F. Supp. 3d , No. 06 Cr. 911 (WHP), 2020 WL 2512105, at *1 n.1 (S.D.N.Y. May 15, 2020); United States v. Estevez, No. 18 Cr. 669 (JPO), 2020 WL 1911207, at *1 (S.D.N.Y. Apr. 20, 2020); United States v. Ebbers, ___ F. Supp. 3d , No. 02 Cr. 1144 (VEC), 2020 WL 91399, at *1 n.1 (S.D.N.Y. Jan. 8, 2020) (noting defendant’s waiver through “extensively citing to his medical records and medical history in his own motion, in correspondence with the Court, and in open Court during oral argument on his motion’). Petitioner’s counsel does not oppose this request.

I thank the Court for its consideration of this request.

Respectfully submitted, GEOFFREY S. BERMAN United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York By: s/ Joshua E. Kahane JOSHUA E. KAHANE Assistant United States Attorney 86 Chambers Street, 3rd floor New York, New York 10007 Telephone: (212) 637-2699 Facsimile: (212) 637-2786 E-mail: joshua.kahane@usdoj.gov cc: Counsel of Record (via ECF)