×
You've used up your 3 free articles for this month. Subscribe today.
Oklahomans Pay for Release of Woman Whose Case Helped Start Marijuana Reform Movement
Loaded on Jan. 9, 2020
by Matthew Clarke
published in Prison Legal News
January, 2020, page 52
Filed under:
Release and Reentry.
Location:
Oklahoma.
by Matt Clarke
When she received a 12-year prison sentence for selling $31 worth of marijuana to a police informant in December 2009 and January 2010, first-time felony offender Patricia Spottedcrow, then-25, thought she wouldn’t see her four young children until they were teenagers. Then her story was featured in …
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
- Ohio Supreme Court Orders Prison Official to Produce Public Records, by Matthew Clarke
- Preliminary Injunction Sought Over Contaminated Drinking Water at Connecticut Prison, by Edward Lyon
- Former Seventh Circuit Judge Posner Founds Short-Lived Project to Help Pro Se Litigants, by Kevin Bliss
- Undiagnosed MRSA Forced Arizona Prisoner to Have Heart Surgery, by Chad Marks
- California Family Mourns Son Who Committed Suicide in Jail, Receives $1.65 Million Settlement, by Edward Lyon
- Wisconsin Pays Another $5 Million for Abuse at Controversial Juvenile Facility, by Kevin Bliss
- Oklahoma Breaks Pattern of Protracted, Expensive Prison Conditions Litigation, by Edward Lyon
- Jury Awards Oregon Prisoner $350,000 After Guard Announces He Was a “PC” Case, by Dale Chappell
- Deaf Oregon Prisoner Awarded $125,000 for Jail’s Failure to Accommodate Disability, by Mark Wilson
- Denver Settles Female Deputies’ Sexual Harassment Lawsuit for $1.55 Million, by Matthew Clarke
- First-Class Mail Insufficient for Mailing Date to be Filing Date in Oregon, by Mark Wilson
- New Georgia Law Provides Protections for Pregnant Prisoners, by David M. Reutter
- Prisoner Co-payments for Health Care Services Eliminated in California, by Chad Marks
- Deaths at Georgia Jail Spur Investigations, Lawsuit, by Edward Lyon
- Oklahomans Pay for Release of Woman Whose Case Helped Start Marijuana Reform Movement, by Matthew Clarke
- Criminal Justice Reformers Apologize for Not Vetting Conference Speaker, by David M. Reutter
- Missouri County Votes to Eliminate Jail Fees, Wiping Out $3.4 Million in Debt for Former Prisoners, by Douglas Ankney
- California Jail Prisoner’s Broken Leg Nets $550,000 Settlement, by Matthew Clarke
- First Major Loss in Recent Challenges to Hep C Treatment for Prisoners, by David M. Reutter
- Securus Technologies Rebrands as Aventiv, by Kevin Bliss
- Rikers Prisoner Smuggles DNA Evidence of Rape Out of Jail; $500,000 Settlement, by Dale Chappell
- New York Court of Claims Orders DOCCS to Turn Over OSI Report, Guards’ Personnel Files, by Dale Chappell
- Rhode Island’s Civil Death Law Bars Prisoners from Filing Lawsuits in State Court, by Dale Chappell
- New York Closes Two More Prisons, Scaring Corrections Workers, by Kevin Bliss
- Government Wants Federal Prisoner’s $250,000 Settlement to Pay Restitution, by Dale Chappell
- Billionaire and Co-Defendant Agree to Donate $1 Million to Stay Out of Jail, by Kevin Bliss
- Missing Property and Overtime Abuse in Illinois Prisons Cost Taxpayers Millions, by Dale Chappell
- Oregon Prisoner’s Preventable Death Reveals Culture of Systemic Indifference, by Mark Wilson
- Lawsuit Filed by Prisoner with Food Allergy is Dismissed, by David M. Reutter
- San Diego County Jails Still No. 1 in Prisoner Deaths, by Douglas Ankney
- Felony Murder Charges Should Not be Used on Juveniles, by Kevin Bliss
- Genesco CEO Denied Term on CoreCivic’s Board of Directors, but Board Refuses His Resignation, by Scott Grammer
- Prisoners, Guards, Students Protest Aramark, by Douglas Ankney
- Pennsylvania Prisoner Given Belt, Then Punished for Having It, by David M. Reutter
- Fifth Circuit Reverses Denial of Qualified Immunity to Prison Officials, by Edward Lyon
- New Mexico: Third-Party Settlement Agreements Resulting from Medical Care Provided by Corizon are Public Documents Subject to Disclosure, by Douglas Ankney
- California AB Prison Gang Members, Others Indicted by Feds
- HRDC Obtains Settlement, $16,000 in Fees and Costs, Against BOP in FOIA Case, by Scott Grammer
- How a 13th Amendment Loophole Created America’s Carceral State, by Flores A. Forbes
- Texas Convict-Leasing Burial Ground Uncovered, by Matthew Clarke
- Tennessee Prisoner Captured After Killing Prison Employee, Escaping, by David M. Reutter
- Florida Women’s Prison Under Scrutiny After Rape by Guard, by David M. Reutter
- California’s Firefighting Prisoners in Short Supply, by Matthew Clarke
- Arizona Court Equates Prison Gang Dropouts with Confidential Informants to Require Redaction of STG Files, by Dale Chappell
- Oregon Passes Historic Juvenile Justice Reform Bill but Refuses to Apply it Retroactively, by Mark Wilson
- South Carolina Prison Industries Employee Fired for Writing Tell-All Book, by Scott Grammer
- Are Re-Enfranchised Florida Felons More Likely to Vote Republican?, by David M. Reutter
- Virginia Circuit Court Awards $197.55 to Prisoner in Property Tort Claim, by Douglas Ankney
- Lawsuit Alleging Denial of Warmth and Sufficient Sleep States Eighth Amendment Claim, by David M. Reutter
- New York District Court Erred in Applying “Three Strike” Rule to Dismissals, by Kevin Bliss
- PLN Prevails in Censorship Suit Against Virginia Jail, by David M. Reutter
- Death Penalty Prosecution in Colorado Costs State Over $1.6 Million, Ends in Life Sentence, by Matthew Clarke
- Private Prison in Pennsylvania Takes Heat; Prison Board Replaced, Superintendent Retires, by David M. Reutter
- In Oklahoma, Lawsuit Options Limited When Prisoners Claim Constitutional Rights Violations, by Quinton Chandler
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- $525,000 Settlement in Minnesota Jail Excessive Force Incident, by Jayson Hawkins
- California Prison Rehabilitation Programs Costly and Ineffective, by Kevin Bliss
- The Other Family Separation: Prisoners Fight to Keep Their Children, by Victoria Law
More from Matthew Clarke:
- Texas Social Workers Challenge Blanket Denial of State Occupational License Based on Youthful Assault Convictions, Aug. 1, 2025
- After Judge’s Letter, at Least 22 Former FCI Dublin Prisoners Granted Compassionate Release, Aug. 1, 2025
- Nebraska Supreme Court Clarifies Award of Time Served Credit for Non-Citizen Awaiting Extradition, Aug. 1, 2025
- Former Oregon Prison Guard Sergeant Sentenced for Sexually Abusing Imprisoned Women, Aug. 1, 2025
- Nebraska Supreme Court Clarifies Procedure for Crediting Jail Time to Multiple Contemporaneously-Imposed Sentences, Aug. 1, 2025
- Over One-Third of Older Texas Prisoners Suffering Cognitive Impairment, July 15, 2025
- Kansas Supreme Court Revives Prisoner’s Challenge to Loss of Parental Rights, June 1, 2025
- Fifth Circuit Reinstates Baha’i Texas Prisoner’s Dietary Claim, June 1, 2025
- $5.6 Million Settlement for California Prisoner’s Wife Strip-searched During Visit, June 1, 2025
- Academic Study of Prison Guards’ Use of Excessive Force Details Sad State of Civil Rights for Abused Prisoners, June 1, 2025
More from these topics:
- After Judge’s Letter, at Least 22 Former FCI Dublin Prisoners Granted Compassionate Release, Aug. 1, 2025. Staff-Prisoner Assault, Failure to Protect (General), Release and Reentry, Bureau of Prisons (BOP), Compassionate Release.
- The Dangerous Practice of Late-Night Jail Releases, July 15, 2025. Failure to Protect (General), Jail Specific, Arrest and Booking, Release and Reentry.
- $1.6 Million Class-Action Settlement for Virginia Prisoners Subjected to Delayed Release, July 15, 2025. Release and Reentry, Overdetention.
- $2.8 Million Settlement in National NUMI Debit Release Card Class Action, June 1, 2025. Release and Reentry, Money/Property, Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Prisoner Property, Trust Accounts.
- Former Tacoma Reentry Center Severs Washington DOC Contract, Jan. 15, 2025. Release and Reentry, housing.
- Eleventh Circuit Announces Defendant Must Know Leaving Residential Facility Without Permission Is ‘Unlawful’ for Escape Conviction Under 28 U.S.C. § 4082(a), Dec. 15, 2024. Escapes, Release and Reentry, Constructive/Imputed/Presumed knowledge.
- Missouri Prisoners Losing Reentry Money to “Incarceration Reimbursement”, Oct. 15, 2024. Release and Reentry, Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Prisoner Property.
- Florida Reentry “Success” Story: Convicted Embezzler Promoted to Oversee Miami-Dade County Contracts, Oct. 15, 2024. Release and Reentry, Embezzlement.
- New TV Show Dramatizes Prisoner’s Re-entry, Oct. 15, 2024. Release and Reentry, TV/Movies.
- Cleveland Jail Warden Dismissed After Asking for More Reentry Assistance for Detainees, July 1, 2024. Retaliation against Staff, Release and Reentry.

