Matthew Morgan, who was serving four years in prison after a dismissed shoplifting charge, will be released.
The news came during a status conference on Thursday for Morgan’s lawsuit against the Vermont Department of Corrections, demanding his release.
Lauri Fisher, an attorney representing the department, said corrections officials had decided during a closed-door case staffing on Wednesday that Morgan was eligible for furloughed release — two days after VTDigger reported on his plight.
Morgan remains in Southern State Correctional Facility in Springfield, waiting for the corrections department to approve a residence for him.
While out on furlough last fall, Morgan was charged with shoplifting a $129 speaker from Walmart. That charge was later dismissed by the state with prejudice, which means the case cannot be brought up again, but not before the department of corrections decided Morgan should spend four years in prison following the alleged violation.
In an interview on Monday, Morgan called the department’s actions “absolutely ludicrous.”
Morgan said his doctor later provided a statement confirming that Morgan had been at a medical appointment at the time of the crime, which led the state to permanently dismiss the case in June. Although court documents show that Morgan’s parole officer informed his corrections caseworker the same day the charges were dropped, Morgan has remained in prison.
Between 2017 and 2019, nearly 80% of all prison admissions in Vermont were due to furlough, probation or parole violations, according to the Council of State Governments Justice Center. Legislation passed in 2020 was intended to reduce returns and revocations of supervision, as well as recidivism.
During Thursday’s status conference, Morgan’s lawyer, Annie Manhardt — supervising attorney in Vermont’s Prisoners’ Rights Office — requested that the court hold another hearing in seven days to hear an update from the corrections department about Morgan’s release.
Vermont Superior Court Judge Dickson Corbett said that the court’s calendar made a hearing next week unlikely, but that a conference would be scheduled “as soon as possible thereafter.”
Morgan objected vehemently to the delay.
“Your honor, I’ve already given eight months of sacrifice seeking relief,” he said, adding that no one from the corrections department had talked to him about his new eligibility for release. According to his attorney, he already has a place of residence in mind, which now requires department approval.
“I really shouldn’t have to jump through hurdles for this release,” Morgan said. “I’m falsely incarcerated.”
Correction: An earlier version of this story described recidivism incorrectly.
