
Federal inmate Damara Holness wants to go home over concerns for proper medical treatment of her pregnancy, Federal records show. In January, Holness began a twenty-four month sentence for charges stemming from COVID-19 relief fund fraud. Holness, the daughter of former Broward County Commissioner Dale Holness, was sent to a Federal women’s facility in Marianna, Florida.
Holness filed a writ of habeas corpus on November 17, 2022 complaining about her medical treatment and request to be transferred to home confinement. In the rambling, single-spaced narrative, Holness claims she was promised to be on home confinement by September 2022. Holness claimed her living conditions and prison diet put her health and the health of her unborn child at risk.
However, Holness did not want the media to make a Federal case of her Federal case.
Stating hers is a “high profile case,” Holness wrote, “I didn’t want retaliation from the media picking up a legal concern with the BOP (Bureau of Prisons).”
Holness included an email documenting classes she signed up for in prison: “Walk With Ease” and “How To Talk To Your Doctor.”
On November 29, 2022 a Federal magistrate ordered Holness to resubmit her writ along with required documentation. The magistrate did wonder if some the issues were moot since Holness was currently living in a Tallahassee halfway house.
