FLORENCE, S.C. — A federal appeals court has overturned a lower court's denial of compassionate release for a South Carolina man serving 35 years in prison for his role in a massive drug conspiracy, ruling that the district court failed to adequately consider his arguments for early release.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit vacated and remanded the case of Demario Covington, 47, who has served 12 years of his 420-month sentence for conspiracy to distribute large quantities of cocaine and crack cocaine.

Covington, who pleaded guilty in May 2012 to leading a drug trafficking organization that operated from 1997 to 2011, had argued that he would receive a significantly shorter sentence if convicted under today's federal sentencing practices. His case involved more than 5 kil

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