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South Carolina Prisoner Does Easy Time
South Carolina state prisoner Kevin Bell, 42, breezed through the last six years of his sentence with the help of local law enforcement officials. In 1996, Bell began serving a 13-year prison term for cocaine trafficking. Six years later he was sent to the Cherokee County Detention Center, at the …
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More from this issue:
- The Prison Industries Enhancement Certification Program: Why Everyone Should be Concerned, by Bob Sloan
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- First Circuit Upholds $101,750,000 in Damage Awards in FBI Misconduct Case, by Matthew Clarke
- Less Than Equal: State officials, including prejudiced human-rights commissioners, block Prisoner complaints, by Lance Tapley
- Prison Labor Bails Out State and County Budgets, by Gary Hunter
- All Eyes On the Court: An Interview with Attorney and Federal Court Monitor Fred Cohen, by Todd Matthews
- Cook County Strip, Body Cavity Searches Held Unconstitutional; Other Suits Pending, by Brandon Sample
- California Cuts Funding for Prop 36 Drug Treatment Programs, by Michael Brodheim
- Michigan Study Shows Incarceration Can Cause Illness in Loved Ones, by Gary Hunter
- Conviction of CIA Contractor Who Fatally Beat Afghan Detainee Upheld on Appeal
- Sexual Victimization Widespread in U.S. Correctional Facilities, by Brandon Sample
- Certificate of Merit in Medical Malpractice Suits Unconstitutional in Washington State, by Jimmy Franks
- Illinois Prisoners Bilked Out of Millions Through DOC Commissary Surcharges, by Joseph R. Dole
- A Tight Leash: Judges Micromanage Federal Offenders After Release, by Brandon Sample
- Texas Counties Give Up on Probationer Restitution Centers, by Matthew Clarke
- Prisoner Transport Guards Accused of Forcing Prisoner to Perform Sex Acts, by Michael Brodheim
- Call Your Attorney from Jail, Go to Prison, by John Dannenberg
- Washington Sex Offender Relieved of Obligation to Register
- Texas Youth Commission Causes Consternation, Conflict in State Legislature, by Gary Hunter
- Ninth Circuit Strikes Down BOP Rule Limiting Early Release for RDAP Participants, by Brandon Sample
- California Prisoner Settles Medical Suit for $35,000
- California Enacts Non-Revocable Parole And Increased Credits To Reduce Prison Population, by John Dannenberg
- New Orleans Jail Conditions Found Unconstitutional, by Jimmy Franks
- Jury Awards $80,001 to New Hampshire Prisoner for Guard Beating
- California Prison Erupts, Hundreds Hurt in Riot, Multiple Causes Cited
- In Support of Ending Prosecutorial Misconduct, by Jimmy Franks
- GEO Group Prison Squalor Drives Idaho Prisoner to Suicide: $100,000 Settlement
- South Carolina Prisoner Does Easy Time, by Gary Hunter
- $100,000 Settlement in New York Prisoner’s Slip and Fall Claim
- $750,000 Settlement in Alabama Prisoner’s Heat Death
- Partial Summary Judgment Granted To PLN in FOIA Case against EOUSA, by Brandon Sample
- Shrinking Budgets Force States to Cut Corrections Spending, by Bob Williams
- $60,000 Settlement for Washington Prisoner Injured by Chemical Spill
- GEO Group Buys Just Care For $40 Million
- Texas Religious Group Policies May Violate First Amendment and RLUIPA; TDCJ Changes Policy
- $2.1 Million Awarded in New York Unjust Conviction Claim
- Four-Year Statute of Limitations Applies to § 1983 Claims Filed in Florida
- Washington DOC Ordered to Pay $174,000 for False Imprisonment
- Canadian Appellate Court Affirms $12,000 Judgment for Prisoner
- Eleventh Circuit Finds Administrative Remedies Unavailable When Prison Official Threatens Retaliation
- $3.1 Million Settlement to Wrongly Convicted Massachusetts Prisoner
- $80,000 Award in NY Prisoner’s Claim for Injuries Caused by Assault
- $200,000 Settlement in Florida Prisoner’s Suicide Death
- Texas Prison Guard Gets 24 Months in Federal Prison
- Fourth Circuit: Heck Bar Inapplicable to § 1983 False Imprisonment Suit
- Failure to Raise Issue in Rule 50 Motion Prohibits Argument on Appeal; $214,000 Verdict Upheld
- Massachusetts GPS Program Upheld by State Supreme Court, by Mark Wilson
- Indiana DOC Directive Limiting Educational Credit to Only One Associate’s Degree Violates Ex Post Facto Clause, by Brandon Sample
- Assessment of Prison Account Without Seizure of Funds Implicates Due Process in Third Circuit, by Mark Wilson
- Tenth Circuit Reverses Dismissal of Failure to Protect Suit, by Brandon Sample
- Defendants Denied Qualified Immunity in Tennessee Jail Detainee’s Death, by Mark Wilson
- Ninth Circuit: California Jail Detainee’s Excessive Force Suit May Proceed, by John Dannenberg
- Texas to Eliminate Centralized Release of Prisoners
- News in Brief:
- Eighth Circuit Rejects Debt Offset of EAJA Fees; Supreme Court to Hear Case, by Mark Wilson
More from Gary Hunter:
- Affluenza Epidemic Rampant in Our Nation’s Criminal Justice System, June 9, 2017
- Denver Sheriff’s Deputy Accused of Ignoring and Instigating Prisoner Attacks, April 5, 2017
- California Health Care Facility Found Deficient and Unconstitutional, March 29, 2017
- Seventh Circuit: Jailhouse Lawyer’s Help No Reason to Deny Appointment of Counsel, Oct. 3, 2016
- Illinois: Exonerated Prisoner Calls $80,000 Award a Travesty, Retrial Ordered, Oct. 3, 2016
- Destined to Fail: the Negative Effect of Collateral Consequence Laws, Aug. 10, 2016
- Federal Guard Has Sex with Coworkers and Impregnated by Prisoner, Aug. 10, 2016
- Negligence not Grounds for Prosecution in Deaths of Wisconsin Prisoners, Aug. 5, 2016
- New York Based Ex-Offender Assistance Program Sues Landlord for Discrimination, Aug. 4, 2016
- Human Rights Report Reveals Inequities in U.S. Sentencing Practices, Aug. 3, 2016
More from these topics:
- Hospital Keeps Sending Detainees Back Without Care to County Jail in Colorado, May 1, 2026. Jail Misconduct, Private Contractors, Failure to Treat, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Deliberate Indifference.
- “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.
- D.C. Judge Blocks Transfer of Biden-Commuted Federal Death Row Prisoners to “Supermax,” Citing Lack of Meaningful Due Process, April 1, 2026. Transfers, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Fifth Amendment, Bureau of Prisons (BOP), Prison Classification.
- Texas Attorney General Clarifies Scope of Statute Requiring Outside Agency Investigation of Jail Deaths, April 1, 2026. Jail Misconduct, Systemic Medical Neglect, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Statutory Construction/Interpretation, Authority and Jurisdiction.
- Federal Death Row Prisoners Granted Clemency by Biden Are Facing Retaliation by Trump, Feb. 1, 2026. Transfers, Pardons/Clemency, Death Row, Bureau of Prisons (BOP), Confinement in Segregated Housing.
- Cuyahoga County Receives Over $846,000 Refund from Securus Technologies, Feb. 1, 2026. Contractor Misconduct, Jail Misconduct, Corrections Audits, Securus.
- County Jail in Oklahoma Accused of Coercing Detainees to Convert to Christianity, Feb. 1, 2026. Jail Misconduct, Religious Practices, First Amendment, rights, Religious Freedom/Worship.
- Eleventh Circuit Upholds Dismissal of Six Female Alabama Jail Detainees’ Sexual Assault Suit, Jan. 1, 2026. Jail Misconduct, Summary Judgment, Limitations, Municipal Liability, Criminal Sexual Abuse.
- Wisconsin DOC Is Not Tracking Work Release Data, Jan. 1, 2026. Work Release, Prison Labor, Statistics/Trends, Fair Labor Standards Act.
- New York State Closes Yet Another Prison, Dec. 1, 2025. Transfers, Work Strikes, Statistics/Trends, Staffing, Reduction of Prison Population.

