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Swine Flu Scare Leads to Unrest at Overcrowded Massachusetts Jail
Loaded on April 15, 2010
by Matthew Clarke
published in Prison Legal News
April, 2010, page 11
by Matt Clarke
Filed under:
Prison Rebellion,
Failure to Treat,
Conditions of Confinement,
Overcrowding.
Location:
Massachusetts.
On July 5, 2009, prisoners at the Middlesex County Jail in Cambridge, Massachusetts staged a disturbance after 11 prisoners and 2 guards presented flu-like symptoms and the hospital discharge papers for one prisoner indicated probable H1N1 (swine flu). [See: PLN, Feb. 2010, p.1]. However, the Sheriff, jail …
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More from this issue:
- Appalling Prison and Jail Food Leaves Prisoners Hungry for Justice, by David Reutter
- Washington Jail a Modern-Day Debtor’s Prison, by Gary Hunter
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Food Problems Contribute to Riot at Kentucky Prison, by David Reutter
- Swine Flu Scare Leads to Unrest at Overcrowded Massachusetts Jail, by Matthew Clarke
- Illinois Prisoners Sue over Soy-Based Food, by Brandon Sample
- Oklahoma Courts Collecting Fines, Costs at Expense of Justice
- Parole Denials Based Upon Assumptions; Tough Policies Threaten Public Safety at Great Cost, by David Reutter
- CCA Loses Contracts for 9,754 Prison Beds in 18 Months; More Losses Looming
- Missoula County Jail Agrees to Settle Excessive Force Suit for $490,000
- New York Passes Legislation Making HIV, AIDS and HCV Prisoner Care a Department of Health Responsibility, by Christina Hernandez
- $491,668 Settlement in Class-Action Suit Against Spokane County Jail, by Matthew Clarke
- Crisis in Reverse: Counties Struggle with Dwindling Jail Populations, by Gary Hunter
- Retired New York Supreme Court Justice Sentenced to Prison for Sex Trafficking, by David Reutter
- Florida Jail Prisoner Paralyzed by MRSA Sues Prison Health Services
- Indiana DOC Changes Sexually Explicit Publication Policy Due to Class-Action Suit, by David Reutter
- Eighth Circuit: Shackling Pregnant Prisoner During Labor Unconstitutional, by Matthew Clarke
- State of Washington Settles Parolee’s Unlawful Detention Suit for $39,695.10
- Son, Wife of U.S. Congressmen Get Prison Time, by Brandon Sample
- Death Row Prisoner Loses Suit Challenging BOP’s Ban on Face-to-Face Media Interviews
- $300,000 Settlement in New York City Jail Prisoner’s Slip and Fall Accident
- Arkansas Prisoner Almost Dies After Being Left in Feces, by Justin Miller
- Virginia DOC K-9 “Training” Results in Animal Cruelty Charges, by David Reutter
- Kinship Care More Beneficial Than State Foster Care for Children of Incarcerated Parents, by Jimmy Franks
- Illinois Prison Officials Fail to Report MRSA Infections
- New York Voters Okay Prison Slave Labor for Nonprofits
- Guards Suspended, Fired in Prostitution Probe at CCA-Run D.C. Jail
- Three Prisoners Raped at Oklahoma Governor’s Mansion
- Indian Country Gets Stimulus Money ... to Build More Jails, by David Reutter
- Washington DOC Agrees to Settle Inadequate Medical Care Suit for $55,000
- Florida County Jail Discontinues Medical Co-Pay Policy, by David Reutter
- New Mexico Prisoner Vindicates Native American Religious Rights with Injunction, Fees and Damages
- Texas Tech and TDCJ Settle Prisoner Suicide Suit for $85,000
- Sex Addicted Ohio Sheriff’s Jail Supervisor Receives $1,000 Following Termination
- Dying in Cell 40: Vermont’s Flawed Contract and Prison Health Service’s Drive for Profit Lead to Prisoner’s Death, by Terry J. Allen
- Georgia Grand Jury Critical of Ticket-Fixing Scam
- California AG’s Spokesman Resigns After Caught Taping Phone Conversations, by Michael Brodheim
- Indiana Indemnification Statute Not Retroactive; Prisoner’s Estate Unable to Collect $56.5 Million Judgment, by David Reutter
- Prison Incident and Investigative Reports Must Be Disclosed Under Alabama’s Open Records Act, by David Reutter
- Prisoner Loses Excessive Force Case in 10 Minutes; Judge Deems Suit Frivolous, Orders $3,000 Paid to Defendants, by Mark Wilson
- 1979 Jail Consent Decree Largely Gutted by PLRA; Reversed on Appeal, by Mark Wilson
- Sweat Lodge Ban Does Not Violate RLUIPA
- Washington State Agrees to Pay $15,000 to Probationer Whose Urine and Blood Were Forcibly Taken from Him
- Illinois Prison Doctor Liable for Failing to Treat Testicular Cysts, by David Reutter
- Texas Court of Appeals Reverses Dismissal of Prisoner’s Retaliation Suit; Second Dismissal Affirmed After Remand, by Matthew Clarke
- Virgin Island Officials Held in Contempt: Prisoner Mental Health Treatment Inadequate, by Matthew Clarke
- Oregon Private Jail Guard is “Corrections Officer”; Prisoner’s Assault Conviction Upheld, by Mark Wilson
- $862,500 Settlement in Mentally Ill Ohio Jail Prisoner’s Death
- NY DOCS Lacks Authority to Administratively Impose PRS – But State’s Liability Uncertain, by Mark Wilson
- Ninth Circuit: 42 U.S.C. § 233(a) Does Not Immunize Public Health Service Employees from Bivens Constitutional Tort Claims, by John Dannenberg
- The Real Cost of Prisons Comix, by Lois Ahrens, PM Press, 90 pages, by Gary Hunter
- California Prison Officials Settle Deliberate Indifference Suit for $12,000, by Michael Brodheim
- Iowa Good Time Statute Violates Ex Post Facto Clause, by Brandon Sample
- Over 10 Million in Prison Worldwide, by David Reutter
- News in Brief:
- California: Demand for Speedy Trial Applies to Probation Violation Detainers, by John Dannenberg
More from Matthew Clarke:
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- Seventh Circuit Holds Federal Law Prohibits County Jail from Forcing Immigration Detainees to Perform Custodial Labor by Threatening Solitary Confinement, Aug. 1, 2026
- New Mexico Supreme Court Holds Corrections Department Regulations Do Not Exempt Use-Of-Force Documents from Public Records Disclosure, Aug. 1, 2026
- DOJ Issues Memorandum Over BOP Employees Abusing Their Law Enforcement Credentials to Illegally Purchase Personal Firearms, Aug. 1, 2026
- Seventh Circuit Upholds Summary Judgment Against Former Illinois Prison Guards Challenging Termination for Violating Use of Force Policy, Aug. 1, 2026
- Federal Court Issues Preliminary Injunction Barring Enforcement of Executive Order to Transfer Trans Women Prisoners to Men’s Prisons, Aug. 1, 2026
- Idaho Supreme Court Holds Indigent Parents Have Constitutional Right to Counsel at Public Expense, July 1, 2026
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- California Appeals Court Holds Defendant Cannot Be Penalized for Failing to Appear at Sentencing When He Was Being Held in Another County’s Jail on Preexisting Charges, July 1, 2026
- SCOTUS Reverses Mississippi Capital Conviction, July 1, 2026
More from these topics:
- “Nothing Short of Disgraceful”: New York Prisoner Wins Injunction Ordering Cancer Treatment Delayed Seven Years, Sept. 1, 2026. Cancer, Failure to Treat, Eighth Amendment, Injunctions, Deliberate Indifference.
- GAO Report on ICE Jail in Fort Bliss Finds Independent Failures, Sept. 1, 2026. Contractor Misconduct, Overcrowding, Security Systems, Americans with Disabilities Act, Immigration Detention.
- North Carolina’s “Iryna’s Law” Leads to Jail Overcrowding, Sept. 1, 2026. Overcrowding, State Legislation, Pretrial Detention and Detainees, Bail/Pretrial Release.
- BOP Denies Providing Substandard Dialysis Treatment Despite Prisoners’ Deaths, Court Filings, Understaffing and Lack of Oversight, Sept. 1, 2026. Systemic Medical Neglect, Private Contractors, Failure to Treat, Staffing, Inadequate Health Care Facilities.
- $280,000 Paid for South Carolina Detainee’s Death in Charleston Jail, Sept. 1, 2026. Private Contractors, Failure to Treat, Contractor Liability, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Monell Liability.
- $5.4 Million Jury Verdict Against Riverside County in Suit Over Jail Fentanyl Death, Sept. 1, 2026. Failure to Treat, Drug Overdose, Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death), Monell Liability, Deliberate Indifference.
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- $3 Million Paid by San Diego County for Diabetic Detainee’s Jail Death; NaphCare Settles Separately for Undisclosed Amount, Sept. 1, 2026. Naphcare, Diabetes, Failure to Treat, Settlements, Medical Neglect/Malpractice.
- Ohio Finds Guards and Medical Staff Failed to Render Life-Saving CPR to Detainee, Sept. 1, 2026. Systemic Medical Neglect, Failure to Treat, Failure to Train/Supervise, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Deliberate Indifference.
- Hawai‘i Pays $600,000 for Prisoner’s Withdrawal Death, Sept. 1, 2026. Medication, Drug/Alcohol Withdrawal, Failure to Treat, Settlements, Medical Neglect/Malpractice.

