DOJ-OGR-00019906.pdf

Finally, the Government recognizes that the COVID-19 pandemic is - and should be - a relevant factor for the Court and the parties in this case. However, the Bureau of Prisons ("BOP") is taking very significant steps to address that concern, and the defendant has offered no reason why she should be treated any differently from the many defendants who are currently detained at the Metropolitan Detention Center ("MDC") pending trial, including defendants who have medical conditions that place them at heightened risk. Inmates at the MDC are able to assist in their own defense, especially long before trial, through established policies and procedures applicable to every pretrial detainee. This defendant should not be granted the special treatment she requests. The defendant faces a presumption of detention, she has significant assets and foreign ties, she has demonstrated her ability to evade detection, and the victims of the defendant's crimes seek her detention. Because there is no set of conditions short of incarceration that can reasonably assure the defendant's appearance, the Government urges the Court to detain her. ARGUMENT Each of the relevant factors to be considered as to flight risk - the nature and circumstances of the offense, the strength of the evidence, and the history and characteristics of the defendant - weigh strongly in favor of detention, and the defendant's proposed package would do absolutely nothing to mitigate those risks. I. The Defendant's Victims Seek Detention As the Court is aware, pursuant to the Crime Victims' Rights Act ("CVRA"), a crime victim has the right to be reasonably heard at certain public proceedings in the district court, including proceedings involving release. 18 U.S.C. § 3771(a)(4). Consistent with that requirement, the Government has been in contact with victims and their counsel in connection with its application for detention. Counsel for one victim has already conveyed to the Government that