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Fourth Circuit Finds 20 Years in Solitary an Atypical and Significant Hardship
On July 1, 2015, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals found the “20-year period of solitary confinement” endured by a South Carolina prisoner “amounts to an atypical and significant hardship in relation to the general population and implicates a liberty interest in avoiding security detention.” It also found a …
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More from this issue:
- Alabama Forced to Confront Criminal Justice Reform, by David Reutter
- Low Pay, Long Hours Fuel Increasing State Prison Staffing Problems, by Derek Gilna
- PLN Exclusive: Illinois Prisoner Exonerated, Released after Ten Years, by Derek Gilna
- How Prison Phone Calls Became a Tax on the Poor
- ACLU Report: Women Uniquely Harmed by Solitary Confinement, by Matthew Clarke
- UK Supreme Court Rules Against Unlawful Use of Solitary Confinement, by Christopher Zoukis
- Disputed PLRA Administrative Exhaustion Issues Properly Resolved in Bench Trial
- $8,000 Settlement for Medical Maltreatment by BOP; Court Finds Experts Not Required, by Derek Gilna
- Corrections Agencies Use Obamacare to Pay for Prisoners’ Medical Care, by Christopher Zoukis
- L.A. County Audit Recommends More Contract Oversight for Probation Department, by Derek Gilna
- Delaware Supreme Court Suspends Prosecutor for Misconduct, by Christopher Zoukis
- $15 Million Award for Prisoner Rendered Paraplegic Due to Medical Malpractice Affirmed, by David Reutter
- Florida’s Private Prison Movement Alive and Well, by David Reutter
- Audits Expose Irregularities in Iowa Prison System Spending, by Derek Gilna
- Seventh Circuit Reverses Dismissal of Ex-prisoner’s § 1983 Action Regarding Computer Disk, by Derek Gilna
- Lawsuit Claims Florida Teen Raped, Beaten in Prison Initiation Ritual
- Fourth Circuit Upholds Denial of Summary Judgment to Guards in Excessive Force Suit
- BOP Pays $70,000 to Settle Lawsuit by Sexually Abused Transgender Prisoner, by Derek Gilna
- $30,000 Settlement for New York Prisoner Assaulted by Guard
- California Supreme Court Rules in Prisoner’s Favor in Compassionate Release Denial, by Gary Hunter
- Nonviolent Michigan Offenders Can Seek Expungement Under New Law, by David Reutter
- Prisoner Rights Advocates Disappointed with Pace of Obama Clemency Initiative, by Derek Gilna
- Former U.S. Attorney General’s Legacy: Too Little, Too Late, by Derek Gilna
- Medically Unacceptable Biopsy States Eighth Amendment Claim
- Prisoners in Chicago Learn Skills, Improve Neighborhoods by Demolishing Vacant Homes, by Gary Hunter
- Report Documents U.S. Recidivism Rates for Federal Prisoners, by Christopher Zoukis
- California Jail’s Psychotropic Medication Policy Leads to Lawsuit, Settlement, by David Reutter
- Idaho Prison Population Drops, Out-of-State Prisoners Re-turned, by Christopher Zoukis
- Delaware Prisoners Sue DOC Alleging Sexual Assaults by Prison Doctor, by Christopher Zoukis
- Seventh Circuit: Former Parolee May Sue Over Delayed Release from Parole
- Hawaii Prisons Experience Security Failures, Other Troubling Incidents, by David Reutter
- Second Circuit: Truth of Arrest Remains Despite Connecticut “Erasure” Law, by Mark Wilson
- Second Circuit: Administrative Remedies Unavailable for Beating at Holding Facility
- BOP Recognizes Humanist Religion after Prisoner Files Suit, by Derek Gilna
- A “Quantum Leap” Isn’t Far Enough for the Prison Phone Industry, by Carrie Wilkinson
- Suit Filed Over New Hampshire DOC’s Restrictive Mail Policy
- Warden’s Decision to Quarantine Handicapped Person in Unaccommodated Cell Actionable; $200,000 Settlement
- Tennessee Sheriff’s Denial of Public Records Merits Attorney Fee Award
- Why is California Thumbing its Nose at a Federal Court?, by Caleb Mason
- New York: $35,000 Awarded for Three-week Illegal Confinement, by Mark Wilson
- Fourth Circuit Finds 20 Years in Solitary an Atypical and Significant Hardship, by David Reutter
- California’s Inspector General Cites Abuses at High Desert State Prison, by Derek Gilna
- $1,000 Jury Award in Texas Prisoner’s Excessive Use of Force Suit, by Matthew Clarke
- Ninth Circuit: Witnesses Cannot Refuse to Testify at Civil Trial
- Supreme Court Reverses SORNA Notification Requirement when Sex Offenders Move Overseas, by Derek Gilna
- Lawsuit Filed Over Death of Pepper-sprayed, Mentally Ill California Prisoner, by Gary Hunter
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- News in Brief
More from David Reutter:
- Tenth Circuit: Colorado Governor Unentitled to Eleventh Amendment Immunity on Claim Related to DOC Religious Policies, Aug. 1, 2026
- Michigan Appeals Court: Witnesses Cannot be Forced to Wear Jail Clothes at Trial, Aug. 1, 2026
- Sixth Circuit Affirms Denial of State-Law Qualified Immunity in Scabies Case, Aug. 1, 2026
- Fourth Circuit Revives Disabled Prisoner’s Claim for Denial of Out-of-Cell Exercise Time, Aug. 1, 2026
- Sixth Circuit Announces State-Law Exceptions to Appeal Deadlines Preserve “Pending” Status Under AEDPA, Holding Belated-Appeal Procedures Toll Federal Habeas Limitations Period, April 1, 2026
- Florida Supreme Court Announces Rule 3.170(f)’s Good-Cause Plea-Withdrawal Standard Does Not Apply at Post-Appeal Resentencing, April 1, 2026
- Colorado Supreme Court Announces Defendant Must Be Competent Before Undergoing Mental-Condition Examination Under § 16-8-107(3)(b), April 1, 2026
- California Court of Appeal Announces Plea Agreements Cannot Bar § 1172.1 Resentencing, Holds Merit-Based Denial of Petition Is Appealable, April 1, 2026
- Georgia Supreme Court Clarifies That Failure to Object to Ineligible Juror Does Not Constitute Waiver Unless Party Knew or Could Have Discovered Ineligibility Through Ordinary Diligence, April 1, 2026
- Washington State Guard’s Conviction Affirmed in Self-Inflicted Gunshot Wound Scheme, March 1, 2026
More from these topics:
- Oregon Agrees to $2.3 Million Settlement After Guards Toss Mentally Ill Prisoner in Solitary, Taunt Him Until He Kills Himself, Aug. 1, 2026. Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Suicides, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Deliberate Indifference.
- Seventh Circuit Holds Federal Law Prohibits County Jail from Forcing Immigration Detainees to Perform Custodial Labor by Threatening Solitary Confinement, Aug. 1, 2026. Prison Labor, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Statutory Construction/Interpretation, Immigration Detention, Monell Liability.
- Fourth Circuit Revives Disabled Prisoner’s Claim for Denial of Out-of-Cell Exercise Time, Aug. 1, 2026. Totality of Conditions, Eighth Amendment, Exercise, Summary Judgment, Qualified Immunity.
- Nevada Prisons Are Facing a Medical Crisis Due to Understaffing, Aug. 1, 2026. Systemic Medical Neglect, Failure to Treat, Eighth Amendment, Staffing, Medical Neglect/Malpractice.
- Oregon Reaches $49 Million Settlement with State Prisoners in COVID-19 Class-Action, Aug. 1, 2026. COVID-19, Eighth Amendment, Settlements, Class Certification, Qualified Immunity.
- Eighth Circuit Revives § 1983 Complaint Alleging Jail Detainees’ Death from Stroke was Due to Deliberate Indifference and Failure to Train, July 1, 2026. Systemic Medical Neglect, Failure to Treat, Eighth Amendment, Failure to Train/Supervise, Deliberate Indifference.
- Alabama Barred from Executing Prisoner by Nitrogen Hypoxia, July 1, 2026. Totality of Conditions, Eighth Amendment, Death Penalty, Cruel and Unusual Punishment, Wrongful Use of Force.
- North Texas Prison Evacuated After Carbon Monoxide Leak, July 1, 2026. Toxic Fumes/Chemicals, Eighth Amendment, Exposure to Cold, Water, Exposure to Heat.
- Prisoners’ Risk of Death In Custody More than Doubles in Solitary Confinement, July 1, 2026. Statistics/Trends, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Confinement in Segregated Housing, Administrative Detention/Segregation.
- Ombuds Report Doesn’t Rule Out Racism or Retaliation at Red Onion State Prison, June 1, 2026. Guard Misconduct, Racial Discrimination, Retaliation for Filing Grievances, Failure to Treat, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement.

