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Washington State Pays Prisoners Slave Wages While Suing Others for Doing the Same
by Ed Lyon
The GEO Group is one of the largest private prison companies in the United States. Its primary reason for existence is to generate profit by warehousing people for the states and federal government. One of GEO’s many prisons is the 1,575-bed Northwest Detention Center in …
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More from this issue:
- News in Brief
- Oklahoma County Settles Jail Death Lawsuit for $3.2 Million, by Dale Chappell
- Taft Correctional Institution Scheduled to Close in 2020 ... Maybe, by Kevin Bliss
- Federal Class-Action Lawsuit Seeks Hepatitis C Treatment for Texas Prisoners, by Matthew Clarke
- Terminal Texas Prisoner’s Morphine Withdrawn After He Filed Sexual Harassment Complaint, by Matthew Clarke
- New York City Department of Correction Attempts to Humanize Prisoners, by Kevin Bliss
- State of New York 50 Percent Liable for Prisoner’s Injury Sustained from Table Saw, by Douglas Ankney
- Orange County Pays $299K to Settle Claim that Deputy Forbade Nurse to Treat Prisoner, by Douglas Ankney
- Exonerated Kentucky Man’s High Bail Prevented His Release for Six Years, by David M. Reutter
- $102,500 Settlement in Lawsuit Over Alaska DOC’s Discrimination Against Muslims, by Matthew Clarke
- Washington State Prisoner’s Suicide Leads to $350,000 Settlement, by Edward Lyon
- Attorney Fees and Costs Awarded in HRDC Suit Against Juvenile Solitary Confinement, by David M. Reutter
- Oregon Prison Guard, Guilty of Pocketing $10,811 in Falsified Overtime, Sues for Racism, by Mark Wilson
- California County Settles Failure to Protect Lawsuit for $90,000, by Dale Chappell
- $45,000 Settlement for Pennsylvania Prisoner Subjected to Excessive Force, by David M. Reutter
- Maryland to Pay $1.4 Million Settlement and Provide Assistance to Blind Prisoners, by Douglas Ankney
- New Mexico Prison Guards Win $700,000 Age Discrimination Settlement, by Edward Lyon
- Jury Awards Former Virginia Prisoner Over $1 Million After Finding of Medical Malpractice against Prison Doctor, by Douglas Ankney
- 20 Years Sees No Improvement in California Prison’s Mental Health Care; Suicide Results in $1.5 Million Settlement, by Kevin Bliss
- Illinois Jail Detainee Dies, Lawsuit Settles for $2.2 Million, by Edward Lyon
- Indiana Prisoner Granted Leave to Proceed in First Amendment Retaliation Suit, by Edward Lyon
- Prison Mailbox Rule Applies to Civil Detainees, by David M. Reutter
- Utah Supreme Court Reinstates Lawsuit Over Man Held 17 Days Without Hearing or Formal Charges, by Matthew Clarke
- Update: Montgomery County, Ohio Pays $10 Million to Settle Jail Lawsuits, by Edward Lyon
- Video Documentary Reports on Florida Prisons – From the Inside, by David M. Reutter
- Washington State Pays Prisoners Slave Wages While Suing Others for Doing the Same, by Edward Lyon
- Third Circuit: Failure to Make PLRA Findings Moots Appeal, by David M. Reutter
- To Decrease Prison Population, Texas Must Increase Parole Rate
- Ministry Worker Banned from Mississippi Prisons After Asking About Plumbing Problems, by Scott Grammer
- Growing Concerns Over Medical Debt Leading to Jail Time, by Kevin Bliss
- Texas Attorney General Secretly Sabotages Compensation Payments to Man Exonerated of Killing Police Officer, by Matthew Clarke
- Ohio Prisoner Killed by Cellmate Who Mistakenly Thought He Was a Child Molester, by Scott Grammer
- BOP to Implement Paperless Mail System in Attempt to Stop Drugs, by Dale Chappell
- California Department of Corrections Tries End-Run Around Federal Court, by Kevin Bliss
- Prisoner Wins Preliminary Injunction Against PADOC Policy Banning Islamic Fezzes, by The Human Rights Coalition
- Missouri Requires County Jails to House State Prisoners, Then Doesn’t Pay for Them, by David M. Reutter
- Alaska: Juvenile Justice Official Sentenced for Possession of Child Pornography, by Kevin Bliss
- $750,000 Settlement in Suit Over Prisoner Beaten and Raped for Three Days, by Matthew Clarke
- Prisoner Suicide Rates Highest in California, by Edward Lyon
- New York City Prisoner Shackled While Giving Birth; $610,000 Settlement, by Edward Lyon
- Georgia: Doctors and Nurses Warn Prison Medical Care is in Jeopardy, by David M. Reutter
- Arizona Prisoners Required to Pay Medical Expenses for Overdoses, by Douglas Ankney
- Prisoners Suffer and Die as Kentucky Overcrowds County Jails, by David M. Reutter
- Graphic Violence, Deaths in Alabama Prison Shown in Leaked Photos, by David M. Reutter
- CoreCivic Booted from LGBT Chamber of Commerce in Hometown, by David M. Reutter
- Members of Congress Investigate Private Equity Firms that Own Companies Providing Prison Services, by Matthew Clarke
- California Begins Weaning Itself from Private Prisons – More or Less, by Edward Lyon
- Getting Out of Jail After Dark Can Be Dangerous – and Sometimes Deadly, by Madison Pauly
- A Place for Released Prisoners to Go Home, by Edward Lyon
- Weaker Job Screening Could Make North Carolina Prisons More Dangerous, by David M. Reutter
- South Carolina: Former Prison Employees Charged, Plead Guilty in Contraband Investigation, by David M. Reutter
- New Jersey County Not Entitled to Defense or Indemnification by the State in Suit Alleging Exposure of Jail Detainees, by Douglas Ankney
- L.A.’s Court-Ordered Community Supervision Enslaves and Impoverishes, by Matthew Clarke
- Prosecutors Get Real Look at Life After Prison, by Dale Chappell
- Former Nevada Prison Guard Who Fatally Shot Handcuffed Prisoner Enters Alford Plea, by Matthew Clarke
- Deaths and Abuse During Private Prisoner Transport Trips, by Matthew Clarke
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Corizon Settles EEOC Disability Discrimination Lawsuit for $950,000, by Scott Grammer
- New York County to Pay $440,000 Settlement in Wrongful Jail Death Suit, by Kevin Bliss
- The Private Option, by Marsha McLeod
More from Edward Lyon:
- “There you go, Agent Orange!” Former South Carolina Sheriff Federally Indicted for Assaulting Jail Detainee, May 1, 2024
- Texas Prisons are Fire Traps, July 15, 2023
- The World’s Biggest Prison, July 15, 2023
- U.S. Prisoner Numbers Slowly Declining, June 15, 2023
- Civilian Police With Military Equipment, June 15, 2023
- California Easing Housing Hurdles for Released Prisoners, June 1, 2023
- Warden Ousted from Troubled Alabama Prison After DUI Arrest, May 1, 2023
- $20,000 Settlement for Ohio Prisoner’s Slip-and-Fall Injury, May 1, 2023
- $32,500 Medical Malpractice Award to Ohio Prisoner for Ripped-Out Catheter, May 1, 2023
- New York State’s Veterans Treatment Courts, April 15, 2023
More from these topics:
- Constitutional Challenge to Louisiana Prison “Farm Line” Granted Class Certification, March 1, 2026. Prison Labor, Exposure to Heat, Injunctions (PLRA), Class Certification, Americans with Disabilities Act.
- Private Prison Firm GEO Group Reports Record $254 Million Profit After New ICE Contracts, March 1, 2026. Staff-Prisoner Assault, Corrections Corporation of America/CoreCivic, GEO Group/Wackenhut, Systemic Medical Neglect, Immigration Detention.
- Incarcerated Women Featured in True Crime Media Face Flood of Sexual Harassment, March 1, 2026. Sexual Harassment, Prison Labor, Hygiene Supplies, Mail, TV/Movies.
- Missouri Prisoners Forced to Shovel Snow in Subzero Temperatures, Feb. 1, 2026. Retaliatory Segregation, Prison Labor, Work Conditions/Safety, Exposure to Cold, Administrative Detention/Segregation.
- Labor Coalition in Minnesota Demands Disney Contractor Pay Prisoners Minimum Wage, Jan. 1, 2026. Prison Industries, Prison Labor, Advocacy, Contractor Liability, jobs.
- Wisconsin DOC Is Not Tracking Work Release Data, Jan. 1, 2026. Work Release, Prison Labor, Statistics/Trends, Fair Labor Standards Act.
- How I Learned to Transcribe Braille in Prison, Jan. 1, 2026. Prison Labor, Education, Rehabilitation/Recidivism, jobs.
- Hyundai and Kia Sued in California for Use of Prison Labor in Southern States, Dec. 1, 2025. Work Release, Prison Labor, Work Conditions/Safety, Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
- Federal Government, CoreCivic Slow-Walk Class-Action Challenges to Forced Labor of ICE Detainees, Nov. 1, 2025. Corrections Corporation of America/CoreCivic, Prison Labor, Class Certification, Class Notice, Sovereign Immunity, Immigration Detention.
- California Approves Higher Wage for Prisoner Firefighters (But Still Underpays), Nov. 1, 2025. Work Release, Prison Labor, Injury -- Misc., Rehabilitation/Recidivism, Good Time.

