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Washington Prisoner’s Negligence Suit Settles for $75,000
Loaded on May 8, 2018
published in Prison Legal News
May, 2018, page 62
Washington State’s Spokane County Jail reached a $75,000 settlement in a lawsuit that alleged guards failed to protect a prisoner from being assaulted by another prisoner.
Justin T. Betts, 35, has a long history of mental illness and has been jailed more than a dozen times. Shortly after …
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More from this issue:
- In the Eye of the Storm: When Hurricanes Impact Prisons and Jails, by Matthew Clarke
- North Carolina Woman Attempts Bail Bond Scheme from Inside Jail, by Monte McCoin
- Porn Reading Rooms in Iowa Prisons Placed on Legislative Hit List
- U.S. Coast Guard Operating Inhumane Floating Prisons, by Christopher Zoukis
- Wrongful Death Case Against New York Jail Settles for $101,500, by Derek Gilna
- Nebraska Sheriffs Profiting from Jail Phone Contracts, by Christopher Zoukis
- Phony New York Lawyer Defrauds Prisoners, Sent to Prison, by Edward Lyon
- North Dakota: Altered Pencil in Prison Results in Weapon Possession Conviction
- Pro Se Rhode Island Prisoner Wins First Amendment Settlement, by Derek Gilna
- Oklahoma Lawmaker Introduces Bill to Lift Prison Smoking Ban, by Monte McCoin
- Major Wage Ratio Gap Between Executives, Employees at Private Prisons, by Steve Horn
- Former Michigan Prisoner Receives Over $817,000 for Wrongful Conviction
- Virginia Federal Court Holds Nation of Gods and Earth is a Religion
- Dying Prisoner’s Complaint Alleged Claim for Failure to Treat Hepatitis C
- Federal Lawsuit Filed Against Oklahoma Sheriffs – All of Them, by Derek Gilna
- Ohio: $75,000 Settlement Reached after 60-Year-Old Woman Body Slammed by Jail Guard, by Christopher Zoukis
- Newspaper Investigation Reveals Significant Problem with Life Sentences in Arizona, by Christopher Zoukis
- California: Governor Signs Bill to Block Expansion of For-profit Detention Centers, by Dale Chappell
- Washington Prisoner’s Negligence Suit Settles for $75,000
- Justice Department Failing to Assess Prison Population Reduction, Clemency and Reentry Programs, by Christopher Zoukis
- Alabama: State Agencies Have Absolute Immunity in a Court of Law or Equity
- Confusion Over Insanity Defense Leads One Jury to Issue Two Verdicts in Triple Murder, by Christopher Zoukis
- $437,500 Settlement for Brutal Beating at Missouri Jail
- The “Qualified Immunity” Doctrine Needs to be Reexamined, by Derek Gilna
- FTCA Claims Survive; PREA Policy Defeats Discretionary Function Exception, by Jeremy Pinson
- $15,000 Award for New York Prisoner in Medical Negligence Case
- Due Process Mandatory Before Texas Requires Sex Offender Registration for Crimes not Covered by Statute, by Matthew Clarke
- Indiana County Settles Jail Guard’s ADA/Discrimination Suit for $150,000, by Matthew Clarke
- Whistleblowing Angola Prisoner Who Faced Retaliation Wins Relief, Redemption
- $14.3 Million Settlement for Probationers Subject to Extortion by Private Company
- Female Prisoners More Likely to be HIV Positive than Non-prisoners, by Edward Lyon
- Former Pennsylvania Guards Settle FMLA Lawsuits for $110,000, by Derek Gilna
- $330,000 for Florida Prison Guards Abused at Training Academy
- Oregon Sex Offenders Get LWOP, Not Treatment
- Court Certifies Class of Missouri Prisoners Denied Hepatitis C Treatment, by Matthew Clarke
- New York Issues New Solitary Confinement Rules for Local Jails Amid Lawsuits, $5 Million Settlement, by Christopher Zoukis
- Seventh Circuit Affirms Denial of Qualified Immunity in Jail Suicide Suit, by Matthew Clarke
- Iowa Prison Officials Drop Disciplinary Sanctions in Controversial Case, by Matthew Clarke
- Federal Prisoner Shot in the Eye Awarded $80,000, by Jeremy Pinson
- Fifth Circuit Reinstates Denial of Medical Care Suit Against Texas County Jail, by Matthew Clarke
- Massachusetts: State Court Officers May Not Enforce Immigration Detainers, by Matthew Clarke
- Tennessee: New Trial Ordered in Prisoner’s Wrongful Death Case, by Steve Horn
- As Prison Populations Drop, Several States Close Facilities, by Dale Chappell, Matthew Clarke
- Prison Mailbox Rule Applied to South Carolina Prisoner’s Late PCR Petition
- ACLU Sues Nebraska Over Unconstitutional Prison Conditions, by Matthew Clarke
- San Quentin Newspaper Editor Arnulfo Garcia Leaves a Legacy, by Dale Chappell
- Prison Chaplain Wins Standoff with BOP Over Carrying Pepper Spray, by Monte McCoin
- Judge Threatens Arizona Officials with Contempt Over Inadequate Prisoner Medical Care, by David Reutter
- New York Law Gives Reformed Offenders an Opportunity to Seal Convictions, by Derek Gilna
- California: Defendants’ Repeated Discovery Obstruction Sanctioned in Guard Sex Abuse Case
- Mother-Son Team Sentenced for Tax Fraud, Obstruction of Justice, by Derek Gilna
- “Survivors Guide to Prison,” by Matthew Cooke, director (Gravitas Ventures, February 2018); 102 minutes, by Steve Horn
- “Witness to Human Torture”: On Both Sides of the Prison Walls, Social Workers Confront Solitary Confinement, by Valerie Kiebala
- British Prison Guard Sentenced for Contraband Smuggling Conspiracy, by Monte McCoin
- PLN Censorship Suit Against Virginia Jail Headed to Trial
- New Mexico Jail Sued by HRDC for Censoring Book Orders, by Derek Gilna
- Governor Vetoes Nevada’s Anti-Private Prison Bill, by Monte McCoin
- Rash of Security Breaches Plagues Nation’s Prisons and Jails, by Christopher Zoukis
- Photos Show Aftermath of Lethal South Carolina Prison Brawl that Left Seven Dead, by Steve Horn
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Mass Incarceration is a Women’s Issue, Too, by Jessicah Pierre
- News in Brief
More from these topics:
- 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.
- $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.
- 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.
- “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.
- Five Prisoners in Georgia Injured in Fight, Two Months After Three Prisoners Were Killed, April 1, 2026. Prison/Jail Murders, Totality of Conditions, Failure to Protect (General), Staffing.
- Eighth Circuit Revives Case Against Guards Who Failed to Intervene As Chaplain Sexually Assaulted Arkansas Prisoner, March 1, 2026. Staff-Prisoner Assault, Failure to Protect (General), Prison Rape Elimination Act, Qualified Immunity, Failure to Train/Supervise.
- Georgia Grand Jury Scolds Augusta Jail for Overcrowding Days Before Violent Detainee Assault, March 1, 2026. Private Contractors, Failure to Protect (General), Overcrowding, Staffing, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness).
- Maryland Prisons Reel from Growing Number of Prisoner Deaths, March 1, 2026. Prison/Jail Murders, Totality of Conditions, Failure to Protect (General), Staffing, Deliberate Indifference.
- Southern Poverty Law Center Report Shows Culture of Abuse at Florida Prison, March 1, 2026. Failure to Protect (General), Overcrowding, Staffing, Pepper Spray/Tear Gas, Administrative Detention/Segregation.
- Three Prisoners Killed in Fight at Georgia Prison, Feb. 1, 2026. Prison/Jail Murders, Totality of Conditions, Failure to Protect (General), Eighth Amendment, Staffing.

