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California Lifers Paroled in Record Numbers
Prisoners serving life sentences in California have been paroled at a record rate since Governor Jerry Brown took office in January 2011 – a positive trend in the view of many advocacy groups, but one that causes worry among victims’ rights advocates despite statistics which reveal a recidivism rate …
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More from this issue:
- Jailhouse Medicine - A Private Contractor Flourishes Despite Controversy Over Prisoner Deaths
- Massachusetts: Lawsuit Filed to Stop Dog Searches of Prison Visitors, by Joe Watson
- Excited Delirium Syndrome: Medical Condition or Cover-Up?, by David Reutter
- New Mexico: Sharon Jones’s Strep Death Among Shocking Prison Tragedies in Lawsuits
- South Carolina Sheriff Resigns, Pleads Guilty to DUI
- Medical Marijuana Use by Arizona Probationer Cannot Support Violation
- Federal Lawsuit Claims Negligence Caused Pennsylvania Prisoner’s Heroin Overdose Death, by Christopher Zoukis
- Irish High Court Bars Extradition of Terror Suspect to U.S., Citing Inhumanity of Solitary Confinement, by Derek Gilna
- $2.5 Million Settlement in North Carolina Prisoner’s Dehydration Death
- Court’s Gag Order in Michigan Jail Corruption Case Reversed
- Failure to Timely Assert Affirmative Defense in Responsive Pleading Constitutes Waiver
- Report Finds Shortcomings at Santa Clara County, California Jail, by Derek Gilna
- Tennessee Prisoner Awarded $60,000 for Guards’ Use of Excessive Force
- $3.5 Million for South Carolina Prisoner’s Death Due to Deliberate Indifference
- Deaf Prisoners Win Important Settlements in Kentucky and Maryland, by Derek Gilna
- Architects’ Ethics Panel to Consider Boycott of Execution Chambers and Prison Design, by David Reutter
- Pepper-spraying Sleeping Prisoner Unconstitutional, but Case Loses at Trial, by David Reutter
- “Fatal Neglect” Report Faults ICE Health Care for Deaths of Detained Immigrants, by Derek Gilna
- Ninth Circuit: Freezing Prisoner’s Funds Requires Pre-deprivation Process, by Mark Wilson
- Second Circuit Allows Muslim Prisoners’ Bivens Claims to Proceed, by Derek Gilna
- DOJ Settlement to Improve Conditions at Mississippi Juvenile Facility
- Colson Task Force Report Highlights BOP Issues, Makes Recommendations, by Derek Gilna
- Book Review: "Illegal to Legal: Business Success for (ex)Criminals, by R.L. Pelshaw", by Christopher Zoukis
- Lawsuit Claiming CMUs Lack Due Process on Appeal to D.C. Circuit, by Derek Gilna
- Delayed Washington Competency Evaluations and Treatment Violate Due Process, by Mark Wilson
- Sacramento County Settles Former Jail Prisoner’s Lawsuits for $3,800, by Matthew Clarke
- Privately-operated Texas Prison Rebounds, by Matthew Clarke
- Transparent Jumpsuit for Prison Transport May Violate Eighth Amendment
- Ninth Circuit: Improper ICE Detainer Constitutes Article III Injury, by Mark Wilson
- The Will of the People: Ex-prisoners Voted into Public Office, by Joe Watson
- California: Strip Searches of Prison Visitors No Longer Allowed
- Exonerated New York Prisoner Recovers $21.9 Million in Damages
- California Supreme Court Voids Ex Post Facto Sex Offender Residency Restrictions, by Derek Gilna
- Texas: $400,000 Settlement Award to Mentally Ill Jail Prisoner
- Lawsuits Challenge Release Debit Cards; Courts Rule Against Arbitration, by Derek Gilna
- Prison’s Censorship of Newsweek Upheld
- Sixth Circuit Allows Revival of Untimely Habeas Appeal Using Rule 60(b), by Matthew Clarke
- $550,000 Jury Award for Failure to Treat Prisoner’s Broken Jaw
- Kentucky Restores Voting Rights for Former Prisoners, then Reverses Course
- Defense Verdict in Kentucky Prisoner’s Death; Appellate Court Reverses, by David Reutter
- Seventh Circuit Reverses Dismissal of Terre Haute Prisoner’s FTCA Suit, by Derek Gilna
- $2.5 Million Award for Wrongfully Convicted Former Michigan Prisoner
- Ninth Circuit Rules Judge “Abused Discretion” in Imposing Abstinence as Supervised Release Condition, by Derek Gilna
- $360,000 Verdict Against Indiana Sheriff for Denying Prompt Court Hearings
- Deaths of Prisoners in Indiana, California and Arkansas Linked to Flu Virus, by Joe Watson
- Texas Disciplinary Appeals Board Upholds Disbarment of State Prosecutor
- $11.3 Million Jury Award for Former Colorado Jail Prisoner, by Matthew Clarke
- Lifetime Registration of Low-level Sex Offenders found Excessive, Unconstitutional in New Hampshire
- New Federal Law that Brands Sex Offenders’ Passports Faces Court Challenge, by Derek Gilna
- Use of Nutraloaf on the Decline in U.S. Prisons, by Christopher Zoukis
- Prisoners Hang Themselves in Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s Jails at a Rate that Dwarfs Other County Lockups, by Michael Lacey
- U.S. Supreme Court Reverses Idaho Supreme Court, Asserts “Federal Supremacy”, by Derek Gilna
- Texas Parole Records Mistake Could Cost Taxpayers Millions, by Gary Hunter
- 2015 Annual Anti-Private Prison Awards Announced
- Settlement in California Jail Suit Includes $4.8 Million in Attorney Fees, Costs, by Derek Gilna
- California Lifers Paroled in Record Numbers, by Christopher Zoukis
- D.C. Circuit Court Partially Stays FCC Order Capping Prison and Jail Phone Rates
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- News in Brief
More from Christopher Zoukis:
- The Contraband Wars Prison authorities target books and mail, miss the goods coming through the staff door, July 1, 2021
- Trump v. Biden on Criminal Justice, Oct. 1, 2020
- Coronavirus in Prison: The Cruel Reality, Aug. 1, 2020
- With Lives of Immigrant Detainees at Risk to COVID-19, Federal Judge Forces ICE’s Hand, July 1, 2020
- A Nation on the Brink, June 15, 2020
- Federal Court Slams Michigan Jail for Bungling COVID-19 Pandemic, Demands Names of Vulnerable Prisoners for Release, June 1, 2020
- Silence: The Bureau of Prisons’ Pathetic Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic, June 1, 2020
- New York Judge Orders Release of 18 Rikers Island Detainees Due to COVID-19 Risk, June 1, 2020
- Coronavirus: A Nationwide Survey of the Push for Early Release as Pandemic Fears Grow, May 1, 2020
- California Three-Judge Court Denies Emergency Motion to Reduce Prison Population During Pandemic, May 1, 2020
More from these topics:
- Arrests of Unhoused People Driving Albuquerque Jail Bookings, May 1, 2026. Government Misconduct, Statistics/Trends, Jail Specific, housing, Prior Conviction/Sentence/Incarceration.
- Prisons in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula “in a Death Spiral” Due to Under-Staffing, May 1, 2026. Staffing, Lockdowns, Rural Prisons, Rehabilitation/Recidivism, Assaults on Staff.
- Prison Policy Initiative Updates Its Mass Incarceration Report, May 1, 2026. Geriatric Classification, Statistics/Trends, Cost of Prison Systems, Electronic Monitoring, Effects of Mass Incarceration.
- The Recycled Police Officer: Research Reveals High Cost of Ignoring Prior Misconduct, May 1, 2026. Harassment by Police, Police Misconduct, Statistics/Trends, Excessive Force (Police), Police/Govt Misconduct.
- Uncounted COVID Deaths Reveal a Troubling Truth About Official Death Records, May 1, 2026. Racial Discrimination, Medical Records, COVID-19, Statistics/Trends, Databases.
- California Spends $300 Million Each Year Incarcerating Senior Citizens in Women’s Prisons, April 1, 2026. Retaliation for Filing Grievances, Totality of Conditions, Parole, Life without Parole (LWOP), Americans with Disabilities Act.
- Prisoners in Oklahoma Can Now Buy Vapes, Pouches from Commissary, April 1, 2026. Medical, Statistics/Trends, Commissary, Prison Regulations.
- Colorado Law Intended to Reduce Prison Population Hasn’t Improved Conditions, March 1, 2026. Overcrowding, Parole, halfway houses, Reduction of Prison Population.
- Fourth Circuit Holds Federal Prisoner Does Not Earn First Step Act Time Credits While in Transit Between Prisons, March 1, 2026. Rehabilitation/Recidivism, First Step Act, Bureau of Prisons (BOP), Credits.
- U.S. Sentencing Commission Report Breaks Down Federal Contraband Sentences, March 1, 2026. Guard Misconduct, Mechanical Searches/Scanners, Statistics/Trends, U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, Bribery/Extortion/Theft.

