UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

EASTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN 

NORTHERN DIVISION 

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, 

 Plaintiff, Case No. 1:15-cr-20097 

v. Honorable Thomas L. Ludington 

AMEER JAN KIANI, 

 

 Defendant. 

_______________________________________/ 

ORDER TO DISCHARGE DEFENDANT ON CONDITIONAL RELEASE 

Defendant Ameer Jan Kiani was charged with the felony offense of Threats Against Former 

Presidents, 18 U.S.C. § 879. He was found to be Not Guilty Only by Reason of Insanity of the 

offense on May 5, 2015. ECF No. 19. Kiani was then committed to the custody of the Attorney 

General until Kiani could establish that his release would not create a substantial risk of serious 

bodily injury to another or serious damage to property of another. ECF No. 20. Kiani was 

hospitalized at the Federal Medical Center – Devens in Massachusetts. 

On March 21, 2017, the Court received the Federal Medical Center’s Risk Assessment 

Panel Report for 2017. That Report concluded that Kiani had recovered sufficiently to be released, 

but only pursuant to a conditional release plan. The Report did not provide a conditional release 

plan or indicate whether one would be forthcoming from the Panel. On September 18, 2017, the 

Court held a status conference with counsel for Kiani, counsel for the Government, and 

representatives from Devens. At the conference, Clinical Social Worker Jennifer Lee-Ramos 

detailed the extensive efforts she had made in seeking a placement for Kiani. On March 7, 2018, 

the Government filed a status report which revealed that Ms. Lee-Ramos’s efforts had been 

Case 1:15-cr-20097-TLL-PTM ECF No. 74, PageID.277 Filed 03/04/19 Page 1 of 3
- 2 - 

ongoing. On March 20, 2018, the Court directed the Government to file a status report every sixty 

days regarding the efforts being made to locate a placement for Defendant. ECF No. 58. 

On January 31, 2019, the Court received the Conditional Release Order and Certificate of 

Recovery from the Office of the U.S. Attorney. The order included a letter from Captain S. 

Spaulding, the warden at the Federal Medical Center in Devens, Massachusetts where Kiani is 

housed. Spaulding explained that “[t]he Risk Assessment Panel concluded that Mr. Kiani was 

appropriate for a conditional release under a prescribed regimen of treatment.” The order 

recommended that Mr. Kiani be placed at the Pioneer Fellowship House in Seattle, Washington 

for up to sixty days. After receiving approval from his probation officer, Kiani would be granted 

permission to reside with his sister at her Seattle residence. 

Section 18 U.S.C. §4243(f) governs the discharge of individuals found not guilty only by 

reason of insanity. It provides 

When the director of the facility in which an acquitted person is hospitalized 

pursuant to subsection (e) determines that the person has recovered from his mental 

disease or defect to such an extent that his release, or his conditional release under 

a prescribed regimen of medical, psychiatric, or psychological care or treatment, 

would no longer create a substantial risk of bodily injury to another person or 

serious damage to property of another, he shall promptly file a certificate to that 

effect with the clerk of the court that ordered the commitment. The clerk shall send 

a copy of the certificate to the person’s counsel and to the attorney for the 

Government. The court shall order the discharge of the acquitted person or, on the 

motion of the attorney for the Government or on its own motion, shall hold a 

hearing, conducted pursuant to the provisions of section 4247(d), to determine 

whether he should be released. 

Section 18 U.S.C. §4243(f). Spaulding is the director of the facility housing Kiani and has 

recommended his conditional release. As such, the Court may order Kiani’s discharge on 

conditional release. On February 6, 2019, the Court ordered the Government to show cause as to 

whether a hearing should be held regarding Kiani’s conditional release to the Pioneer Fellowship 

Case 1:15-cr-20097-TLL-PTM ECF No. 74, PageID.278 Filed 03/04/19 Page 2 of 3
- 3 - 

House and later, to his sister’s residence. ECF No. 72. Two days later, the Government filed a 

response, stating that it would not be requesting a hearing. ECF No. 73. 

 Accordingly, it is ORDERED that Defendant be discharged on conditional release 

pursuant to the U.S. Department of Justice’s Conditional Release Order, filed separately under 

seal. 

Dated: March 4, 2019 s/Thomas L. Ludington 

 THOMAS L. LUDINGTON 

 United States District Judge 

 

Case 1:15-cr-20097-TLL-PTM ECF No. 74, PageID.279 Filed 03/04/19 Page 3 of 3