×
You've used up your 3 free articles for this month. Subscribe today.
Missouri Sheriff Tells Judge that County Won’t Pay for Prisoners’ Food, Medical Care
by Bill Barton
In April 2019, Clay County Sheriff Paul Vescovo sued the Missouri county’s three-member commission, claiming that it slashed his operating budget by over 40 percent “in retaliation for a criminal referral made two years ago.”
That referral involved assistant county administrator Laurie Portwood, who …
Full article and associated cases available to subscribers.
As a digital subscriber to Prison Legal News, you can access full text and downloads for this and other premium content.
Already a subscriber? Login
More from this issue:
- News in Brief
- NBC Sends Anchorman Lester Holt to Prison as Part of its “Justice for All” Series, by Chad Marks
- The Cost of Prison Censorship: Florida Taxpayers to Pay $1.2 Million in HRDC Case
- $8,500 Settlement in Allegheny County Jail Sexual Harassment Suit, by David M. Reutter
- $860,000 Settlement in Suit Over Michigan Female Prisoner’s Suicide, by David M. Reutter
- Organization Connected to Missouri Prison Director Gets No-Bid Contract, by Scott Grammer
- Federal Prisoner Challenges Constitutionality of Death Penalty; Gets Plea Deal for Life Without Parole, by Matthew Clarke
- Court Orders Changes to Alabama Prison System After 15 Suicides; Feds Threaten Suit, by Scott Grammer
- Department of Justice Report Shows Small Decrease in U.S. Prison Population, by Scott Grammer
- Compassionate Releases Needed for an Aging Prisoner Population, by Edward Lyon
- Florida Supreme Court Issues Death Penalty Rulings, by Edward Lyon
- Washington State Settles Suit Over 15-Hour-a-Day Lockdown of Mentally Ill Prisoners, by Matthew Clarke
- South Carolina: Lawsuit Alleges Medical Staff, Guards Negligent in Baby’s Death, by Bill Barton
- Usual Cruelty: The Complicity of Lawyers in the Criminal Injustice System, by Alec Karakatsanis, by Sam Feldman
- Arizona Court Grants Partial Summary Judgment to PLN in Censorship Suit, by Matthew Clarke
- Study Finds that War on Drugs Kept Black Men from Higher Education, by Scott Grammer
- Maryland: Parole Changes Needed for Life-Sentenced Prisoners, by Chad Marks
- Man Mistakenly Released 13 Years Ago Won’t Have to Return to Prison, by Douglas Ankney
- Allegheny County Settles Three Lawsuits Over Medical Care at County Jail, by Dale Chappell
- West Virginia Regional Jails Entitled to Sovereign Immunity, by David M. Reutter
- Seventh Circuit: Failure to Provide Medical Accommodation is Deliberate Indifference, by Kevin Bliss
- Three Deaths in Three Days at Illinois Prison Spur Calls for Greater Transparency, by Chad Marks
- Missouri Sheriff Tells Judge that County Won’t Pay for Prisoners’ Food, Medical Care, by Bill Barton
- No Fourth Amendment Violation for Abusive Group Strip Search of Female Prisoners, by Edward Lyon
- Pattern of Abuse and Mismanagement at North Carolina Jail, by David M. Reutter
- $3.1 Million Settlement for Washington Jail Detainee’s Death, by Douglas Ankney
- Seventh Circuit: Non-Medical Prison Staff Entitled to Qualified Immunity, by Douglas Ankney
- New Jersey: Appellate Court Shoots Down $7.5 Million Verdict in Prison Whistleblower Case, by Chad Marks
- Nevada Supreme Court Reverses Dismissal of Prisoner’s Native American Religion Suit, by Matthew Clarke
- Why Not Let Prisoners Vote While Incarcerated?, by Bill Barton
- Ex-Offenders Work for Organization that Repairs and Sells Vehicles at Low Cost, by Douglas Ankney
- Court Declines to Seal Records in Michigan Prisoner’s Excessive Force Case, by David M. Reutter
- New York: Prisoners Have No Expectation to Privacy During Jail Phone Calls, by Chad Marks
- Missouri Jury Awards $113.7 Million to Prison Guards Required to Work Without Pay, by Matthew Clarke
- Muslim Civil Rights Group Files Discrimination Suit Over Virginia Jail’s “God Pod”, by Matthew Clarke
- Whistleblower Lawsuit Exposes Violence, Cover-ups at Rikers Island Jail, by Dale Chappell
- Prison’s Refusal to Allow Wiccan Services Must be Reviewed for Compelling Governmental Interest, by Kevin Bliss
- Conditions Lawsuit Against Indiana County Jail Certified as a Class Action, by Kevin Bliss
- Fifth Circuit Terminates Consent Decree for Muslim Services in Texas Prisons, by Matthew Clarke
- Oregon Prisoner’s Use of Another Prisoner’s Phone PIN Constitutes Identity Theft, by Mark Wilson
- Sex Offenders Excluded from Florida Shelters During Hurricane, by David M. Reutter
- Pennsylvania’s Buck County Liable for Illegally Disclosing Criminal Records, by David M. Reutter
- Alaska Supreme Court Rules Against Muslim Prisoner on Correspondence Ban, by Edward Lyon
- Judge Orders Federal Prisoner with Cancer Released Due to Poor Medical Care, by Matthew Clarke
- Eleventh Circuit: Tasing of Inert Detainee is Excessive Force, by David M. Reutter
- Appellate Court Holds Louisiana Prisoner’s Medical Malpractice Claim May Proceed, by David M. Reutter
- How High-Priced Drugs Cripple Prison Health Care – and Reform, by Priti Krishtel
- HRDC Lawsuit Proceeds Over Care Provided to Florida Prisoner Who Starved to Death, by David M. Reutter
- Victim Notification Law Plagues Alabama’s Parole System, by Kevin Bliss
- Louisiana Enters into Subscription Model Contract for HCV Treatment, by David M. Reutter
- Washington DOC Medical Director Fired for Negligence, by Dale Chappell
- Louisiana Prison Industry Program Puts Profits Before Prisoners, by Kevin Bliss
- Virginia Death Row Conditions Subjected Prisoners to Risk of Harm, by David M. Reutter
- U.S. Department of Justice Plans to Ramp up Federal Death Penalty, by Chad Marks
- Behind Bars, Co-Pays Are a Barrier to Basic Health Care, by Victoria Law
- Oregon Transgender Prisoner Must be Housed Alone or with Other Transgender or NonCisgender Prisoners, by Mark Wilson
- Alabama Prisoners Bring Awareness of Abusive Conditions Through Hunger Strikes, by Kevin Bliss
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Beyond Estelle: Medical Rights for Incarcerated Patients, by Greg Dober
More from Bill Barton:
- Time to Curb Police Unions, Nov. 15, 2020
- Philadelphia Jails to Release Prisoners Earlier in the Day, Oct. 1, 2020
- Missouri Downsizing Prisons to Save Cash, Oct. 1, 2020
- BOP Official Reportedly Had Sexual Relationship With Former Police Union Head, Sept. 1, 2020
- Alabama Says It Will Reform Prisons, the Nation’s Deadliest, Aug. 1, 2020
- Devastating Consequences of Chicago Gang Database – And No Way to Be Removed, July 15, 2020
- Rappers Jay-Z and Yo Gatti Help Prisoners in Mississippi Sue State Over “Inhumane and Unconstitutional Conditions”, July 1, 2020
- Rhode Island Corrections’ Union President Fined for Excessive Political Donations, June 1, 2020
- Report: Oaks of Justice Pitch to Help Prisoners Return Home Appears Shady, June 1, 2020
- A Mass Purge of Misconduct Records by Phoenix, Arizona Police, May 15, 2020
More from these topics:
- New Report on Privatized Prison Food Shines a Light on Aramark’s Harmful Practices, Aug. 1, 2026. Food/Commissary (Private Prisons), Aramark, Food.
- Airconditioning Failure at Troubled ICE Detention Center in New Jersey, Aug. 1, 2026. GEO Group/Wackenhut, Food, Water, Sanitation, Exposure to Heat.
- ICE Stops Reporting Deaths of Recently Released Detainees, July 1, 2026. Misconduct/Corruption, Medical, Conditions of Confinement, Immigration Law/Offenses, Civil Rights Actions or Offenses/Bivens Actions.
- Fifth Circuit Kills Louisiana Prison Medical and Mental Health Care Reform, July 1, 2026. Medical, Conditions of Confinement, PLRA, Immunity/Liability, Mental Health.
- Louisiana’s Atavistic Approach to Criminal Sentencing and Parole Demonstrates Politicians’ Failure to Learn from Past Mistakes, July 1, 2026. Medical, Conditions of Confinement, Sentencing, Parole, Prisoners' Rights.
- BOP Ordered to Restart Gender Affirming Care for Trans Prisoners, July 1, 2026. Medical, Conditions of Confinement, Administrative Exhaustion (PLRA), Transgender.
- $3.25 Million Verdict in New York Against Jail Medical Profiteer Armor Health, July 1, 2026. Private Prisons, Misconduct/Corruption, Medical, Conditions of Confinement, Civil Rights Actions or Offenses/Bivens Actions.
- Federal Conviction, Guilty Pleas for Jail Guards Responsible for Oklahoma Detainee’s Death, July 1, 2026. Misconduct/Corruption, Medical, Conditions of Confinement, Excessive Force, Civil Rights Actions or Offenses/Bivens Actions.
- Tainted Chicken Leads to Widespread Salmonella Outbreak at New York Jail, July 1, 2026. Contractor Misconduct, Infections, Food, Sanitation, Negligence/Reckless Endangerment.
- Prison Profiteer The GEO Group Accused of Refusing Health Inspections at Detention Facility Despite Court Ruling, June 1, 2026. GEO Group/Wackenhut, Food, Water, Injunctions, Immigration Detention.

