More from this issue:

1. News in Brief
2. NBC Sends Anchorman Lester Holt to Prison as Part of its “Justice for All” Series, by Chad Marks
3. The Cost of Prison Censorship: Florida Taxpayers to Pay $1.2 Million in HRDC Case
4. $8,500 Settlement in Allegheny County Jail Sexual Harassment Suit, by David M. Reutter
5. $860,000 Settlement in Suit Over Michigan Female Prisoner’s Suicide, by David M. Reutter
6. Organization Connected to Missouri Prison Director Gets No-Bid Contract, by Scott Grammer
7. Federal Prisoner Challenges Constitutionality of Death Penalty; Gets Plea Deal for Life Without Parole, by Matthew Clarke
8. Court Orders Changes to Alabama Prison System After 15 Suicides; Feds Threaten Suit, by Scott Grammer
9. Department of Justice Report Shows Small Decrease in U.S. Prison Population, by Scott Grammer
10. Compassionate Releases Needed for an Aging Prisoner Population, by Edward Lyon
11. Florida Supreme Court Issues Death Penalty Rulings, by Edward Lyon
12. Washington State Settles Suit Over 15-Hour-a-Day Lockdown of Mentally Ill Prisoners, by Matthew Clarke
13. South Carolina: Lawsuit Alleges Medical Staff, Guards Negligent in Baby’s Death, by Bill Barton
14. Usual Cruelty: The Complicity of Lawyers in the Criminal Injustice System, by Alec Karakatsanis, by Sam Feldman
15. Arizona Court Grants Partial Summary Judgment to PLN in Censorship Suit, by Matthew Clarke
16. Study Finds that War on Drugs Kept Black Men from Higher Education, by Scott Grammer
17. Maryland: Parole Changes Needed for Life-Sentenced Prisoners, by Chad Marks
18. Man Mistakenly Released 13 Years Ago Won’t Have to Return to Prison, by Douglas Ankney
19. Allegheny County Settles Three Lawsuits Over Medical Care at County Jail, by Dale Chappell
20. West Virginia Regional Jails Entitled to Sovereign Immunity, by David M. Reutter
21. Seventh Circuit: Failure to Provide Medical Accommodation is Deliberate Indifference, by Kevin Bliss
22. Three Deaths in Three Days at Illinois Prison Spur Calls for Greater Transparency, by Chad Marks
23. Missouri Sheriff Tells Judge that County Won’t Pay for Prisoners’ Food, Medical Care, by Bill Barton
24. No Fourth Amendment Violation for Abusive Group Strip Search of Female Prisoners, by Edward Lyon
25. Pattern of Abuse and Mismanagement at North Carolina Jail, by David M. Reutter
26. $3.1 Million Settlement for Washington Jail Detainee’s Death, by Douglas Ankney
27. Seventh Circuit: Non-Medical Prison Staff Entitled to Qualified Immunity, by Douglas Ankney
28. New Jersey: Appellate Court Shoots Down $7.5 Million Verdict in Prison Whistleblower Case, by Chad Marks
29. Nevada Supreme Court Reverses Dismissal of Prisoner’s Native American Religion Suit, by Matthew Clarke
30. Why Not Let Prisoners Vote While Incarcerated?, by Bill Barton
31. Ex-Offenders Work for Organization that Repairs and Sells Vehicles at Low Cost, by Douglas Ankney
32. Court Declines to Seal Records in Michigan Prisoner’s Excessive Force Case, by David M. Reutter
33. New York: Prisoners Have No Expectation to Privacy During Jail Phone Calls, by Chad Marks
34. Missouri Jury Awards $113.7 Million to Prison Guards Required to Work Without Pay, by Matthew Clarke
35. Muslim Civil Rights Group Files Discrimination Suit Over Virginia Jail’s “God Pod”, by Matthew Clarke
36. Whistleblower Lawsuit Exposes Violence, Cover-ups at Rikers Island Jail, by Dale Chappell
37. Prison’s Refusal to Allow Wiccan Services Must be Reviewed for Compelling Governmental Interest, by Kevin Bliss
38. Conditions Lawsuit Against Indiana County Jail Certified as a Class Action, by Kevin Bliss
39. Fifth Circuit Terminates Consent Decree for Muslim Services in Texas Prisons, by Matthew Clarke
40. Oregon Prisoner’s Use of Another Prisoner’s Phone PIN Constitutes Identity Theft, by Mark Wilson
41. Sex Offenders Excluded from Florida Shelters During Hurricane, by David M. Reutter
42. Pennsylvania’s Buck County Liable for Illegally Disclosing Criminal Records, by David M. Reutter
43. Alaska Supreme Court Rules Against Muslim Prisoner on Correspondence Ban, by Edward Lyon
44. Judge Orders Federal Prisoner with Cancer Released Due to Poor Medical Care, by Matthew Clarke
45. Eleventh Circuit: Tasing of Inert Detainee is Excessive Force, by David M. Reutter
46. Appellate Court Holds Louisiana Prisoner’s Medical Malpractice Claim May Proceed, by David M. Reutter
47. How High-Priced Drugs Cripple Prison Health Care – and Reform, by Priti Krishtel
48. HRDC Lawsuit Proceeds Over Care Provided to Florida Prisoner Who Starved to Death, by David M. Reutter
49. Victim Notification Law Plagues Alabama’s Parole System, by Kevin Bliss
50. Louisiana Enters into Subscription Model Contract for HCV Treatment, by David M. Reutter
51. Washington DOC Medical Director Fired for Negligence, by Dale Chappell
52. Louisiana Prison Industry Program Puts Profits Before Prisoners, by Kevin Bliss
53. Virginia Death Row Conditions Subjected Prisoners to Risk of Harm, by David M. Reutter
54. U.S. Department of Justice Plans to Ramp up Federal Death Penalty, by Chad Marks
55. Behind Bars, Co-Pays Are a Barrier to Basic Health Care, by Victoria Law
56. Oregon Transgender Prisoner Must be Housed Alone or with Other Transgender or Non­Cisgender Prisoners, by Mark Wilson
57. Alabama Prisoners Bring Awareness of Abusive Conditions Through Hunger Strikes, by Kevin Bliss
58. From the Editor, by Paul Wright
59. Beyond Estelle: Medical Rights for Incarcerated Patients, by Greg Dober

More from Douglas Ankney:

• Pregnant Women Detained in Jail: The Hideous Story of In-Custody Births, May 1, 2026
• Idaho DOC Director Denies Verified Report of Rampant Sexual Abuse of Women Prisoners by Staff, May 1, 2026
• Fourth Circuit Announces Defendant Has Standing to Appeal Based Solely on Rogers–Singletary Claim of a “Material Discrepancy Between” Written and Orally Articulated Judgment at Sentencing, May 1, 2026
• Illinois Jail Reprimanded for Denying Detainees Mail Based on Media Content, P.O. Box Return Address, Settles Detainees’ Suit with $111,825 Payment of Legal Fees, May 1, 2026
• Sixth Circuit Announces Federal Coercion and Enticement Statute Requires Knowledge of Victim’s Minor Status, Deepening Circuit Split, May 1, 2026
• Oklahoma Supreme Court: Jail Trust Cannot Withhold Requested Records under Law Enforcement Exemption of ORA, May 1, 2026
• Delaware Supreme Court Announces Adoption of ABA Standard 3-6.5(b) Governing Prosecutors’ Opening Statements, Reverses Murder Convictions Based on Prosecutor’s References to Co-Defendant’s Guilty Plea, May 1, 2026
• Tenth Circuit Holds Prior California Child Pornography Conviction Does Not Trigger Federal Mandatory Minimum Because State Statute Encompasses Conduct Beyond Federal Definition Under Categorical Approach, April 1, 2026
• Kentucky Supreme Court Clarifies Parole Board May Delegate Final Revocation Hearings to Administrative Law Judges but Holds Due Process Requires Parolees Be Permitted to File Exceptions to ALJ Findings Before Board Renders a Final Revocation Decision, April 1, 2026
• New York Court of Appeals Holds Generic Physical Description Insufficient to Justify Pursuit in Mistaken Identity Case, and Suspect’s Flight Cannot Support Reasonable Suspicion Absent Evidence He Knew He Was Fleeing Law Enforcement, April 1, 2026

More from these topics:

• ACLU Threatens New Lawsuit After Indiana County’s Repeated Failures to Abide by 17-Year-Old Settlement Agreement, May 1, 2026. Overcrowding, Exercise, Sanitation, Bedding, Settlements.
• Massachusetts Settles Lawsuit with Promise to Release Jail Voting Data, April 1, 2026. Voting, Advocacy, Settlements, Voting Rights, Felon Disenfranchisement Statute.
• Virginia Jail Suicide Results in $950,000 Settlement, Claims Against Wellpath still Pending, April 1, 2026. Private Contractors, Medical Records, Settlements, Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death), Suicides.
• Tulsa Jail Withholds Records Related to Detainee Deaths, April 1, 2026. Private Prisons, Wrongful Death, Suicides, Access to Media, Public Records Act.
• $300,000 Class-Action Settlement at California Jail Includes Policy Changes; Agreements with Aramark and Wellpath Reached Confidentially, March 1, 2026. Food, Sanitation, Settlements, Class Certification, Monell Liability.
• South Dakota Sobriety Program Participants Will No Longer Be Jailed for Non-Payment of Fees, March 1, 2026. Settlements, Class Certification, Fourteenth Amendment, rights, Unlawful Detention, Ability to Pay.
• $4,652 for Jewish Nevada Prisoner Denied Passover Meal, Jan. 1, 2026. Religious Discrimination, Food, Settlements, First Amendment, rights, Dismissal.
• HRDC Sues New Mexico County for Violating 10-­Year-­Old Settlement of Censorship Suit, Jan. 1, 2026. Settlements, Publications/Books, Due Process, Censorship, First Amendment.
• $4 Million Settlement Reached in Class Action Challenge to Conditions at Shuttered St. Louis “Workhouse” Jail, Dec. 1, 2025. Totality of Conditions, Jail Specific, Settlements, Class Certification.
• $6.49 Million Settlement for 600,000 Prisoners in Massive CorrectCare Data Breach Class Action, Dec. 1, 2025. Private Contractors, Medical Records, Damages, Settlements, Privacy Act/Rights.