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Tenth Circuit Rules on $3.38 Million Verdict in CCA Prison Sexual Abuse Case
In February 2012, a federal jury in New Mexico awarded $3.38 million to three female prisoners who were raped by Anthony Townes, a guard at the Camino Nuevo Women’s Correctional Facility, which was operated by Corrections Corporation of America (CCA). Townes, who had previously pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting …
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More from this issue:
- “This Man Will Almost Certainly Die”
- Missouri County Settles Suit Over Jail Prisoner’s Suicide for $260,000
- Heck Satisfied if Ruling Fails to Address Issues but Reverses Conviction
- Reforms at New Orleans Jail Slow to Materialize; Death Reporting Problematic, by David Reutter
- Michigan Prison Guards Fired Following Suicide Bet
- Pennsylvania: DA Apologizes for Undisclosed Gifts
- Private Jail Contractor’s Insurance Excludes Coverage of Detainee’s Death
- South African Prison Evacuated Due to Squalor; Two Prisoners Die from Rat-Borne Disease, by Christopher Zoukis
- Photo of Prisoner Beaten by Georgia Gang Members Posted Online
- Tennessee Sheriff’s Willful Denial of Public Records Merits PLN Attorney Fee Award
- Wardens “Retire” from Two California Women’s Prisons
- Ferguson, Missouri Under Fire for Revenue-based Criminal Justice System, by Christopher Zoukis
- Tennessee District Attorney Ends Sterilization in Plea Bargains; Prosecutor Fired, by David Reutter
- Another Appeal in New York Post-Release Supervision Case, by Matthew Clarke
- Former Warden, Sheriff, Justice of the Peace Charged in Texas Corruption Scandal, by Matthew Clarke
- Corrections Officials Stealing Prisoners’ Identities a Growing Problem, by Christopher Zoukis
- Corizon Faces Suit for Failing to Administer Tube Feedings to Pennsylvania Prisoner
- Tenth Circuit Rules on $3.38 Million Verdict in CCA Prison Sexual Abuse Case, by Derek Gilna
- Corizon, CCA Settle Lawsuit Over Solitary Confinement of Elderly Woman, by Matthew Clarke
- New Study Documents Lower Pre-arrest Incomes for Prisoners, by Derek Gilna
- Are French Prisons Radicalizing Muslim Prisoners?, by Joe Watson
- Prison Survival Guides Find Audience Beyond Soon-to-be Prisoners, by Derek Gilna
- Merits Ruling on Procedurally Flawed Grievance Satisfies PLRA
- Father of Four Dies in Privately-operated Texas Jail; Civil Suit Expected
- Phoenix Fire Investigators and Insurance Company Implicated in Wrongful Prosecutions, by Joe Watson
- Missouri: Habeas Corpus Granted to Prisoner Denied Jail Credit
- If the Risk is Low, Let Them Go
- California Prison Employees Reap Staggering Overtime Payments, by Christopher Zoukis
- Attica Prison Guards Who Viciously Beat Prisoner Avoid Jail Time but Lose Jobs
- Fifth Circuit Holds Louisiana Prisoner May Sue Over Failure to Credit Good Time , by Matthew Clarke
- $500,000 in Settlements after Utah Prisoner Dies when Medical Technician Doesn’t Show up for Work, by Christopher Zoukis
- Missouri Governor Doesn’t Have to Serve as Public Defender
- More Suicides, Overdoses and Murders in California Prisons, According to Death Review Report, by Joe Watson
- Ninth Circuit Declines to Enforce Procedural Bar When Prison Officials Waive Rule
- Prison Rodeos: A Bunch of Bull?, by David Reutter
- New Mexico County Officials Settle Jail Prisoner’s Suit for $750,000
- Ninth Circuit Adopts Test to Excuse Exhaustion of Administration Remedies for Retaliatory Threats
- Connecticut Prisoners File Suit Over Exposure to Radon Gas, by Panagioti Tsolkas
- Prominent Texas Capital Defense Attorney Suspended for a Year
- Potential Class-action Suit over Domestic Violence “Victim Fees” in Georgia
- Widespread Failures at Crime Labs Continue to Plague Criminal Justice System , by Derek Gilna
- Private Prison in Texas Closes after Riot Renders it Uninhabitable, by Matthew Clarke
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- News in Brief
More from Derek Gilna:
- Federal Judge in Louisiana Issues Sweeping Opinion Finding Numerous Eighth Amendment, ADA and RA Violations at Angola, April 1, 2022
- Human Rights Defense Center Prevails in Censorship Lawsuit Against Napa County Jail, California, Sept. 1, 2021
- California State Auditor’s Report Faults Counties for Waste and Poor Oversight of State Funds Used in “Public Safety Realignment”, Sept. 1, 2021
- The Fight Over Cellphones in Prisons Rages On, Sept. 1, 2021
- District Court Extends Armstrong Order to Five Additional California Prisons, Sept. 1, 2021
- HRDC Settles Censorship Lawsuit with Johnson County, Kansas Jail for $50,000 and Policy Changes, Aug. 1, 2021
- Virginia Prosecutors to Dismiss 400 Drug Convictions Tied to Disgraced Cop, July 15, 2021
- Discredited New York Police Detective’s False Testimony Causes the Dismissal of Close to 100 Drug Convictions, June 15, 2021
- D.C. Department of Forensic Sciences Firearms Examination Unit Under Fire, April 15, 2021
- Mississippi Joins Illinois and Few Other States Prioritizing Vaccination of State Prisoners to Slow Spread of COVID-19, April 1, 2021
More from these topics:
- Atlanta Jail Boasts Improvements Since Consent Decree, Reports from Monitor and ACLU Are More Critical, May 1, 2026. Staffing, Sanitation, Guard Brutality/Beatings, Consent Decrees, Bail/Pretrial Release.
- 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.
- Idaho DOC Director Denies Verified Report of Rampant Sexual Abuse of Women Prisoners by Staff, May 1, 2026. Staff-Prisoner Assault, Guard Misconduct, DOC/BOP misconduct, Retaliatory Segregation, Prison Rape Elimination Act.
- “Like the Walking Dead”: Smuggled Drugs Fuel Chaos Inside Ohio Prisons, May 1, 2026. Contractor Misconduct, Guard Misconduct, Drug Overdose, Security Systems, Drugs - Determination of.
- Texas Officials Testify That Cost to Air Condition Prisons Tops $1.5 Billion, May 1, 2026. Eighth Amendment, Exposure to Heat, Administrative Exhaustion (PLRA), Deliberate Indifference, Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA).
- $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.
- Watchdog Finds Barely 1 in 10 Complaints Against California Prison Staff Handled Adequately, May 1, 2026. Guard Misconduct, DOC/BOP misconduct, Evidence, Staff Training, Statutes of Limitation and Laches.
- Six Maryland Guards Convicted in Prisoner’s Beating, Cover-up; § 1983 Suit Filed, May 1, 2026. Guard Brutality/Beatings, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Obstruction of Justice, Wrongful Use of Force, Evidence - Destruction/Fabrication/Manipulation of.
- 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.
- Nevada Non-Profit Founder Under Investigation for Misconduct, May 1, 2026. Staff-Prisoner Assault, Staff-Prisoner Harassment, Contractor Misconduct, Complaints, Restrictions, discrimination.

