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$4.6 Million Settlements in Death of Quadriplegic D.C. Prisoner
by David M. Reutter
When 27-year-old Jonathan Magbie entered the District of Columbia Jail to serve a 10-day sentence, he was a quadriplegic confined to a mouth-operated wheelchair. Four days later he was dead.
D.C. Superior Court Judge Judith E. Retchin sentenced Magbie to jail after he pleaded guilty to …
When 27-year-old Jonathan Magbie entered the District of Columbia Jail to serve a 10-day sentence, he was a quadriplegic confined to a mouth-operated wheelchair. Four days later he was dead.
D.C. Superior Court Judge Judith E. Retchin sentenced Magbie to jail after he pleaded guilty to …
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More from this issue:
- Preserving the Rule of Law in America’s Jails and Prisons: The Case for Amending the Prison Litigation Reform Act, by Margo Schlanger
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Ninth Circuit Flip-Flops: Denial of Washington Sex Offender’s Community Custody Release Held Unconstitutional, Then Constitutional, by Mark Wilson
- Texas Posthumously Exonerates Man Who Died in Prison, by Matthew Clarke
- $226,000 Workers’ Comp Settlement for Pennsylvania Guard Scarred by MRSA
- ADA Routinely Violated by Prisons in the case of Deaf Prisoners, by McCay Vernon, Ph.D.
- The Illusion of Immigrant Criminality: Getting the Numbers Wrong, by David L. Wilson
- Florida Guard Convicted of Assaulting Prisoner
- Supreme Court Holds Supervisory Officials Not Liable for Abuse of 9-11 Detainees, by Matthew Clarke
- $30,000 Settlement in Milwaukee Jail Death
- Former Oregon DOC Food Manager Abandons Wife to Federal Prosecution; Herding Sheep in Iran While on the Lam, by Mark Wilson
- UNICOR Robs Jobs from Private Sector; Prisoners Sue Over Working Conditions, by Brandon Sample
- Prisoner’s Right to Mail Announcement of Peaceful Demon-stration Trumps Purported Prison Security Claims, by Marvin Mentor
- University of Arizona Releases Report on Women Immigration Prisoners, by Matthew Clarke
- $500,000 Awarded to New York Prisoner Raped by Jail Guard; Vacated on Post-Trial Motion
- Habeas Hints: Traverse Motion Responses, by Kent A. Russell
- Sentencing Project Releases Report on Sentencing Policy and Practice, by Matthew Clarke
- Oregon Jail Guards Lose Access to Porn Sites, by Mark Wilson
- New Mexico Abolishes Death Penalty; Similar Efforts Fail in Other States, by David Reutter
- Arkansas Sends Toxic Tech Trash to UNICOR Recycling Program, by Matthew Clarke
- FBI Arrests Former Prisoner Indicted for Hacking Massachusetts Jail Computer
- $4.6 Million Settlements in Death of Quadriplegic D.C. Prisoner, by David Reutter
- Strip-Searched Iowa Bush Protesters Awarded Damages at Trial, Re-Trial, by Matthew Clarke
- Positive Correlation between Mental Illness and Prison Victimization, by Jimmy Franks
- Santa Cruz County, Arizona Pays $3 Million in Strip Search Suit, by Jimmy Franks
- $10,000 Verdict in Sexual Assault by Virginia Guard
- Report Says Unfinished Prison Project Is Single Greatest Iraq Reconstruction Failure, by Matthew Clarke
- Bureau of Justice Publishes Report on Sexual Misconduct at Juvenile Facilities
- Ohio Limits Electronic Monitoring to Only Those Who Can Pay
- Miami’s Sex Offender Bridge Encampment Continues to Grow, by David Reutter
- BOP Failed to Protect Female Prisoner Informant from Rape, Sexual Abuse by Guards, by Brandon Sample
- $3,200 Awarded to Indiana Jail Prisoner for Negligent Medical Care
- New York Prisoner Awarded $5,000 for Assault by Cellmate
- Postal Service Panics Over Sex Offender Participant in Christmas Program, by Matthew Clarke
- PLN Files Suit Against Los Angeles County for Failure to Comply with Public Records Act
- Survivor Manual, compiled and edited by Bonnie Kerness, illustrated by Todd Tarselli and other talented artists, 90 pgs., by Sundiata Acoli
- Causal Link Established by Prison Officials’ Failure to Protect Prisoner from Specific Threats
- $3.3 Million Settlement Fund Established in New Mexico Jail Strip Search Settlement
- California Jury Awards Deaf Prisoner $5,000 for Failure to Provide Interpreter; $193,582 in Fees Awarded by Court
- Former California DOC Worker Kept Confidential Prison Gang Files at Home
- Louisiana Private Prison Warden Arrested for Malfeasance
- Massachusetts Prisoner Awarded $550,307 in Attorney Fees and Costs in Unsanitary Conditions Case
- California: Waiver of Private Psychotherapist-Patient Privilege an Unreasonable Condition of Parole
- Oregon Teenage Girls Stage Brazen Escape Attempt
- $75,000 Settlement for Shutting Off Water in Seattle Jail Prisoner’s Cell
- $445,000 Settlement in Ohio Jail Prisoner’s Medical Death
- Pennsylvania County Sex Offender Residency Ordinance Voided
- State, Not County, Required to Pay Attorney Fees in Georgia Death Penalty Cases
- $9,000 Award for Hawaiian Prisoners Bitten By Dogs at Oklahoma CCA Prison
- Florida and Oregon Prison Employees Face Sex Charges
- Fifth Circuit Rules Texas Parole Law Not Ex Post Facto
- No Qualified Immunity for Pepper Spraying Alabama Prisoner; Case Settles After Remand, by David Reutter
- News in Brief:
- $1,800,000 Settlement in Michigan Jail Prisoner Suicide Case
More from David Reutter:
- Eight Circuit Reverses Denial of Partial Qualified Immunity in Detainee’s Pepper Ball Claim, Remands Excessive Force Claims, Sept. 1, 2026
- Nevada Prisoners, Families Call Out Predatory Tablet Program, Sept. 1, 2026
- Fourth Circuit: Error in Granting Judgment Prior to Adjudging Spoliation Motion, Sept. 1, 2026
- Fourth Circuit Affirms Qualified Immunity in Strip Searches Resulting from Anonymous Tips, Sept. 1, 2026
- Tenth Circuit: Colorado Governor Unentitled to Eleventh Amendment Immunity on Claim Related to DOC Religious Policies, Aug. 1, 2026
- Michigan Appeals Court: Witnesses Cannot be Forced to Wear Jail Clothes at Trial, Aug. 1, 2026
- Sixth Circuit Affirms Denial of State-Law Qualified Immunity in Scabies Case, Aug. 1, 2026
- Fourth Circuit Revives Disabled Prisoner’s Claim for Denial of Out-of-Cell Exercise Time, Aug. 1, 2026
- Sixth Circuit Announces State-Law Exceptions to Appeal Deadlines Preserve “Pending” Status Under AEDPA, Holding Belated-Appeal Procedures Toll Federal Habeas Limitations Period, April 1, 2026
- Florida Supreme Court Announces Rule 3.170(f)’s Good-Cause Plea-Withdrawal Standard Does Not Apply at Post-Appeal Resentencing, April 1, 2026
More from these topics:
- The Dramatic Increase in the Elderly Prison Population Is Fiscally and Morally Irresponsible, Oct. 1, 2026. Food, Life without Parole (LWOP), Age, Reduction of Prison Population.
- Maryland Pays $314,000 for Stonewalling Public Records Requests in Prisoner’s Dehydration Death, Oct. 1, 2026. DOC/BOP misconduct, Water, Attorney Fee Awards, Settlements, Public Records Act.
- Last of Three Oklahoma Jail Death Settlements Totaling $66.5 Million Paid for Fatal Dehydration of “Cookie Queen”, Oct. 1, 2026. Diabetes, Settlements, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Deliberate Indifference.
- San Francisco Jail Survey Exposes Abuse, Malnutrition and Constitutional Violations, Oct. 1, 2026. Failure to Protect (General), Food, Guard Brutality/Beatings, Attorney Visits, Pretrial Detention and Detainees.
- CoreCivic’s Non-Binding Promises Leave Minnesota City Exposed, Oct. 1, 2026. Corrections Corporation of America/CoreCivic, Cost of Prison Systems, Tax Law, Contractor Liability, Immigration Detention.
- Disabled Prisoners in New York Aren’t Receiving Entitled Accommodations, Oct. 1, 2026. Disabled Prisoners, Retaliation for Filing Grievances, Failure to Treat, Americans with Disabilities Act.
- $3.75 Million Paid by Wisconsin After Mentally Ill Prisoner Dies of Dehydration, Oct. 1, 2026. Water, Settlements, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Deliberate Indifference.
- Healthcare Still Lacking at Baltimore Jail Decades After Settlement, Oct. 1, 2026. Centurion, Systemic Medical Neglect, Private Contractors, Staffing, Consent Decrees.
- Wyoming Stops Sending Prisoners to Mississippi After Staffing Improves, Oct. 1, 2026. Out of State Transfers, Corrections Corporation of America/CoreCivic, Cost of Prison Systems, Staffing.
- Ninth Circuit Reverses Dismissal of Prisoner’s ADA Complaint Alleging Denial of Toileting and Hygiene Services, Oct. 1, 2026. Disabled Prisoners, Hygiene Supplies, Summary Judgment, Americans with Disabilities Act, Deliberate Indifference.

