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New Mexico Abolishes Death Penalty; Similar Efforts Fail in Other States
by David M. Reutter
“Regardless of my personal opinion about the death penalty, I do not have confidence in the criminal justice system as it currently operates to be the final arbiter when it comes to who lives and who dies for their crime,” said New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, …
“Regardless of my personal opinion about the death penalty, I do not have confidence in the criminal justice system as it currently operates to be the final arbiter when it comes to who lives and who dies for their crime,” said New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, …
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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:
- The Malleable Mind in the Courtroom: Why Confident Eyewitnesses Often Provide the Least Reliable Evidence, Oct. 15, 2025
- Help Wanted: 31,000 Prison Guard Jobs Open Nationwide, Sept. 1, 2025
- Fifth Circuit Greenlights Federal Takeover of Mississippi Jail, Aug. 1, 2025
- Ninth Circuit Revives Prisoner’s Claim Based on Guard’s Thwarting of Administrative Remedies, Aug. 1, 2025
- Tenth Circuit Ruling Paves Way for $2.7 Million Settlement for Intellectually Disabled Jail Detainee Raped by Sheriff, Aug. 1, 2025
- Ninth Circuit Agrees That Former Guantanamo Detainee Lacks Grounds to Sue for Waterboarding, Aug. 1, 2025
- Qualified Immunity Denied for Iowa Prison Doctor’s MRI Delay for Non-Medical Reasons, Aug. 1, 2025
- Ninth Circuit: Continuing-Violations Doctrine Applies for PLRA Administrative Exhaustion Purposes, Aug. 1, 2025
- First Circuit: Prosecutor’s Breach of Plea Agreement Requires Government’s Specific Performance of Agreement, Not Specific Performance by District Court, Aug. 1, 2025
- Oregon Prisoners Can Now Seek Economic Damages for Future Lost Income More Easily, July 15, 2025
More from these topics:
- Dissenter Excoriates SCOTUS for Denying Certiorari in Challenge to Constitutionality of Nitrogen Hypoxia Execution, Feb. 1, 2026. Death Penalty, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Capital Punishment, Cruel and Unusual Punishment, Method of Execution.
- Virginia Prisoners Stuck Waiting for Education Programs, Feb. 1, 2026. Staffing, Education, Rehabilitation/Recidivism, State Legislation.
- California Oversight Agency Hasn’t Finished a Single Review of Jail Deaths, Feb. 1, 2026. Corrections Audits, Medical Records, Disclosure of Records, State Legislation.
- 2025 Was a Deadly Year for Veterans Behind Bars, Jan. 1, 2026. Brain Injury, Death Penalty, Mental Health, Veterans, Mental Health Experts.
- Oklahoma Prisoner Found Unconscious in Cell Hours After Avoiding Execution, Dec. 1, 2025. Public Defenders, Pardons/Clemency, Life without Parole (LWOP), Death Penalty, Effective Assistance of Counsel.
- Missouri Blocks Spiritual Advisors from Prison Pastor’s Execution, Nov. 1, 2025. Pardons/Clemency, Death Penalty, Lethal Injection Method of Execution, Religious Freedom/Worship, Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA).
- Body-Worn Camera Program for Guards Expands to all Maryland Prisons, Nov. 1, 2025. Videotaping, Security Systems, Guards/Staff, Staff Training, State Legislation.
- Eleventh Circuit Overturns 1990 Alabama Death Sentence Over Racially Biased Jury Selection; ACLU Report Shows It Is Still Happening, Nov. 1, 2025. Racial Discrimination, Habeas Corpus, Death Penalty, Batson Claims, Racial Bias Exception.
- South Dakota Approves $650 Million New Prison Construction, Nov. 1, 2025. Cost of Prison Systems, State Legislation, Reduction of Prison Population.
- In the Killing Chamber, Oct. 1, 2025. Death Penalty, Death Row.

