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No Right to Self-Defense in Prison
Loaded on July 15, 1994
published in Prison Legal News
July, 1994, page 10
John Rowe is an Indiana state prisoner. A prisoner named Michael Evans was moved into a cell next to Rowe and Rowe complained to staff, who did nothing. Evans sent Rowe a note demanding sexual favors. The next morning Evans entered Rowe's cell and attempted to rape him, Rowe screamed …
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More from this issue:
- Supreme Court Defines "Deliberate Indifference" in Prison Rape Case
- Lockdown May Be Unconstitutional
- Media Hype Exposed
- NM Visitors May Refuse Searches
- 2nd Cir. Declines to Rule on Informant Testimony
- Prisoners Retain Right Against Self-Incrimination
- Prison Industries Supervisor Liable for Attack
- Prisoners Denied Right to Vote, by Paul Wright
- WA Prisoners Must Exhaust State Remedies
- WA S.Ct. Upholds Sex Offender Registration
- Cross Gender Strip Searches Illegal
- English Only Rule for Prayer Illegal
- CO Ad Seg Rules Don't Create Liberty Interest
- Non-English Mail Okay
- Filthy Cell Standards Clarified
- Change in Parole Hearings Violates Ex Post Facto
- Delay in Treatment States Claim
- No Right to Self-Defense in Prison
- Shackling States Claim
- Prisoners Have Right to Jury from Community
- Court is Ultimate Arbiter of Consent Decree
- Urinalysis is Search
- Administrative Exhaustion May Be Required
- RFRA Supersedes O'Lone
- RFRA Has Retroactive Application
- Court Upholds Denial of Prisoner Witness Fees
- Transport of Prison Made Goods Illegal
- Photos Unlawful
- FL DOC to Deport Aliens
- Suit Filed Against "Shoot to Wound" Policy
- Texas Prison Reform Suit May Reopen, by Tim Queen
- The ACLU Takes Indiana Prison Officials to Court
- From The Editor, by Paul Wright
- PLN Suit Filed Against ISRB, by Paul Wright
- Drug Use Legalized in Columbia
- Prisoner Dies at Purdy
- News in Brief
- Prison Psychologist Opens Brothel
- HIV+ Cellmate Doesn't State Claim
- Prison Overcrowding Crisis Continues, Says ACLU Report
- OH Double Standard, by Reader Mail
More from these topics:
- Fourth Circuit Revives North Carolina Prisoner’s Suit Blaming Lazy Guards for Assault by Detainee, May 1, 2026. Failure to Protect (General), Qualified Immunity, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Cruel and Unusual Punishment, Deliberate Indifference.
- $1.25 Million Paid for Special Needs Teen’s Fatal Beating in Houston Jail, May 1, 2026. Prisoner-Prisoner Assault, Failure to Protect (General), Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death), Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Cruel and Unusual Punishment.
- Seventh Circuit Upholds Liability but Reverses Damages in Lawsuit Over Illinois Warden and Investigator Using Prisoner as Bait to Catch Staff Member Raping Her, May 1, 2026. Staff-Prisoner Assault, Failure to Protect (General), Damages, Evidentiary Ruling, Cruel and Unusual Punishment.
- “Large Fight” Broke Out at Alaska Prison After Downsizing Effort, April 1, 2026. Transfers, Cost of Prison Systems, Totality of Conditions, Failure to Protect (General), Overcrowding.
- Five Prisoners in Georgia Injured in Fight, Two Months After Three Prisoners Were Killed, April 1, 2026. Prison/Jail Murders, Totality of Conditions, Failure to Protect (General), Staffing.
- Alaska Prisoner’s Discipline for Violating Invalidated Rule Tossed, March 1, 2026. Disciplinary Hearings, Access to Media, Statutory Construction/Interpretation, Authority and Jurisdiction, Administrative Detention/Segregation.
- Eighth Circuit Revives Case Against Guards Who Failed to Intervene As Chaplain Sexually Assaulted Arkansas Prisoner, March 1, 2026. Staff-Prisoner Assault, Failure to Protect (General), Prison Rape Elimination Act, Qualified Immunity, Failure to Train/Supervise.
- Seventh Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment in Illinois Prisoner’s Segregation Lawsuit, March 1, 2026. Liberty Interests, Evidence, Totality of Conditions, Ad-Seg Hearings, Administrative Detention/Segregation.
- Georgia Grand Jury Scolds Augusta Jail for Overcrowding Days Before Violent Detainee Assault, March 1, 2026. Private Contractors, Failure to Protect (General), Overcrowding, Staffing, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness).
- Maryland Prisons Reel from Growing Number of Prisoner Deaths, March 1, 2026. Prison/Jail Murders, Totality of Conditions, Failure to Protect (General), Staffing, Deliberate Indifference.

