A sick man was released from a New York prison on Friday after suing the state for keeping him long past his parole date.
Steve Coleman, who is 67 and has advanced kidney disease, was granted parole in 2023 after serving 43 years for murder. But he remained incarcerated for 21 more months because the Department of Corrections could not find a nursing home to accommodate his dialysis care.
Experts said that many paroled prisoners across the country are in a similar limbo, stuck inside because their state cannot find them medical care elsewhere. The problem is expected to become more acute as the prison population ages and needs more complex care.
Mr. Coleman sued New York State in August, contending that he should be allowed to leave prison and determine his own medical care. A lower court ruled against him in September, and he appealed. Fourteen medical ethicists had written a letter supporting his release.
The Wende Correctional Facility in upstate New York released him on Friday morning, according to Martha Rayner, a lawyer with the Parole Prep Project, a nonprofit that helps inmates apply for early release.
Ms. Rayner, who met Mr. Coleman when he was wheeled out of the facility, said that he told her he had “no words” to describe his feelings.
The state released him without a nursing home placement, and Ms. Rayner said he would receive medical care in New York City. The Department of Corrections had initially opposed the idea, arguing in litigation that it would be “unsafe and irresponsible” to release him without plans to meet his medical needs.
In a statement, the Department of Corrections confirmed that Mr. Coleman was released and said that he will be required to follow certain conditions of his parole.
Last month, The New York Times reported on the incarceration of Mr. Coleman and other sick inmates in New York who remained imprisoned months, or even years, after being granted parole.
Doctors and lawyers told The Times that the state sometimes performed little more than a cursory search for nursing homes. Inmates described being unable to gain access to the care they needed in prison. Mr. Coleman, for example, had not received dialysis for months because the state had ended a contract with its provider. The prison offered to take Mr. Coleman to a nearby clinic, but he declined because he found the transportation protocol — which involves a strip search and shackles — painful and invasive.
Nearly 90 people were granted medical parole in New York between 2020 and 2023, but the state does not disclose how many are waiting for nursing home placements.
Westil Gonzalez, another prisoner whose case was highlighted by The Times, still remains incarcerated seven months past his parole date as the state searches for a nursing home that can accommodate his advanced multiple sclerosis. Mr. Gonzalez uses a wheelchair and has poor vision.
He told The Times in December that he had not been given glasses despite repeated requests. In late January, after the Times article was published, he received a pair of glasses, according to a Parole Prep volunteer assisting him with his case.
