As jails in Washtenaw, Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties reduce prison populations in response to the coronavirus crisis, Livingston County’s most-famous jail inmate — disgraced former Livingston County District Judge Theresa Brennan — will remain housed.
It’s not known where Brennan is housed. One day after reporting to the Livingston County Jail to begin serving a six-month sentence after pleading guilty to a single charge of perjury in her divorce case, Brennan was moved to another facility. Even though she was housed in a secure, separate location locally, there was a chance Brennan could have come into contact with people she had dealt with in court.
No matter where she is housed, though, Brennan is considered a Livingston County prisoner, and conditions at the Livingston County Jail at present don’t warrant considering any early releases.
“We are at roughly half capacity and have a lot of ability to segregate and isolate,” said Livingston County Sheriff Michael Murphy. “And, frankly, our jail has never been cleaner. I firmly believe that folks in jail are safer here than they are on the ‘outside’ with all our procedures and protocols in place, plus having on-site medical.”
Would Brennan be considered for an early release if Livingston County’s COVID-19 situation changed?
“Yes,” Murphy said. “If things were to change, she would be considered (for early release) along with everyone else. As I have said from the beginning, she is being treated no differently than any other inmate.”
According to a Click on Detroit report, only non-violent offenders are being considered for release in the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, and all decisions are being made by court judges, often the one who did the sentencing.
At the present time, Brennan is scheduled to be released in late June 2020.
