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$2.5 Million Settlement Over Prisoner’s Restraint Death in Houston, Texas Jail
by Matt Clarke
The family of a man who died at a jail in Harris County, Texas while being subjected to a dangerous form of restraint settled for $2.5 million in a lawsuit they brought against the county and seven jail officials.
Kenneth Christopher Lucas, 38, was …
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More from this issue:
- News in Brief
- Public Relations Firm Terminates Contract With GEO Group, by Scott Grammer
- PLN Awarded Injunction in Arizona Prison Censorship Suit, by David M. Reutter
- $10 Million Post-Appeal Settlement in Oklahoma Jail Prisoner Death Suit, by Matthew Clarke
- $850,000 Settlement in Florida DOC Prisoner’s Gassing Murder, by David M. Reutter
- Get Celebrity Endorsement and Get Pardoned, by Douglas Ankney
- 18-Month Prison Sentence for Former Alabama Sheriff in Food Bank Scam, by David M. Reutter
- Court Holds Federal Tort Claim Against BOP Can Proceed in MCC Beating Death, by Kevin Bliss
- Sacramento County Jail Settles Solitary Confinement Class Action Suit, by Scott Grammer
- Santa Rita Sheriff’s Office Says Prisoners Not Being Maltreated; Prisoners’ Protest Says Otherwise, by Kevin Bliss
- Most States Saw Criminal Justice Reforms in 2019, But Incarceration Rates Remain High, by Victoria Law
- $250,000 Settlement in Assault Upon Luzerne County Detainee, by David M. Reutter
- $550,000 Settlement in Nationwide Class-Action Lawsuit Over High-Fee Debit Cards, by Matthew Clarke
- $300,000 Settlement in Lincoln County Missouri Jail Attempted Suicide Suit, by Chad Marks
- Report Decries Ongoing Inadequate Medical Care for Pregnant Arizona Prisoners, by Matthew Clarke
- Veteran Dies After Beating by Guards at North Carolina Jail, by David M. Reutter
- Senator Warren Has Plan To Ban Private Prison Contracts, by Scott Grammer
- Fulton County Ordered to Clean Up Repulsive Jail Conditions for Mentally Ill Women, by David M. Reutter
- Florida Prison Isolation Suit Survives Dismissal Stage, by David M. Reutter
- Alabama Jail Guards Face Liability for Inaction to Methadone Withdrawal Symptoms, by David M. Reutter
- Riots At South Carolina Prison Spark Wave of Lawsuits, by David M. Reutter
- $12.6 Million Jury Award for Man Denied Medical Care Before Jailed, by David M. Reutter
- “Free” E-Tablets Are Anything But, by Edward Lyon
- Federal Prisoner to Receive Opioid Addiction Medication While Incarcerated, by Kevin Bliss
- Cook County Jail’s Three Book Possession Policy Constitutional, by David M. Reutter
- $150,000 Settlement for Opioid Withdrawal Death in Indiana County Jail, by Anthony W. Accurso
- Michigan Finding Success With More Humane Treatment of Mentally Ill Prisoners, by David M. Reutter
- Court Confirms Pennsylvania Prisoner’s Sentence in Tobacco Contraband Case, by David M. Reutter
- Suicide or Murder? Jeffrey Epstein’s Death Still Drawing Attention to Bureau Inadequacies, by Anthony Accurso
- Long-running Maricopa County, Arizona Jail Lawsuit Ends, by Edward Lyon
- Seventh Circuit Upholds Prison Guard’s Rape Convictions, But County Not Liable, by Scott Grammer
- Report Published on Louisiana’s Extensive Use Of Solitary Confinement, by Scott Grammer
- Guard Who Failed to Prevent Escape Entitled to Qualified Immunity, by David M. Reutter
- States Rush to End Prison Gerrymandering Before Districts Are Set For Another 10 years, by Aleks Kajstura
- Court Grants Bail to Ex-Peruvian President Challenging Extradition Due to Solitary Confinement, by Dale Chappell
- California: Qualified Attorney Work-Product Protection Applies to Discovery During Habeas Proceedings, by Douglas Ankney
- Oklahoma Commutations Largest Mass Release in U.S. History, by Kevin Bliss
- States Move for True Second Chance Opportunities, by Kevin Bliss
- Death Highlights Need for Change in Texas GEO-Run Prison, by Kevin Bliss
- Seventh Circuit Upholds Denial of Wisconsin Prisoner’s Request to Marry Psychologist, by Edward Lyon
- Federal Court Orders Videophone Access for Deaf Prisoners in Colorado, by Matthew Clarke
- Hawaii Prisoners Rebel Over Prison Conditions, Fined For Damages, by Kevin Bliss
- $200,000 Settlement in Lawsuit Over Louisiana Jail Guard Sexually Abusing Juvenile, by David M. Reutter
- Pennsylvania GEO-Run Jail Boss Resigns After Media Reveals Complaints of Racism, Abuse at Private Prison, by David M. Reutter
- Louisiana Sheriff Re-Elected Despite Prisoner Death Toll, by Jayson Hawkins
- Major Prison Health Care Companies Funnel Campaign Contributions to Sheriffs, Get Rewards, by David M. Reutter
- $2.5 Million Settlement Over Prisoner’s Restraint Death in Houston, Texas Jail, by Matthew Clarke
- Neither Fines Nor Lawsuits Deter Corizon From Delivering Substandard Health Care, by Matthew Clarke
- $1.15 Million Settlement in Pennsylvania Prisoner’s Asthma Death, by David M. Reutter
- It’s Time For the Feds To Fund College Education For Prisoners, Again, by Anthony W. Accurso
- Oregon Lawmakers Prohibit Prison and Jail Telephone Kickbacks, by Mark Wilson
- Biden’s Current Prison Reform Stance Counter to His Abysmal Record, by David M. Reutter
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Lethal Prison Electric Fences May Violate International Law, by Matthew Clarke
- Inside the US Marshals’ Secretive, Deadly Detention Empire, by Seth Freed Wessler
More from Matthew Clarke:
- Seventh Circuit Grants Qualified Immunity to Detectives Who Revealed Prisoner Was Informant, Denies Him Anonymity, Aug. 1, 2026
- Seventh Circuit Holds Federal Law Prohibits County Jail from Forcing Immigration Detainees to Perform Custodial Labor by Threatening Solitary Confinement, Aug. 1, 2026
- New Mexico Supreme Court Holds Corrections Department Regulations Do Not Exempt Use-Of-Force Documents from Public Records Disclosure, Aug. 1, 2026
- DOJ Issues Memorandum Over BOP Employees Abusing Their Law Enforcement Credentials to Illegally Purchase Personal Firearms, Aug. 1, 2026
- Seventh Circuit Upholds Summary Judgment Against Former Illinois Prison Guards Challenging Termination for Violating Use of Force Policy, Aug. 1, 2026
- Federal Court Issues Preliminary Injunction Barring Enforcement of Executive Order to Transfer Trans Women Prisoners to Men’s Prisons, Aug. 1, 2026
- Idaho Supreme Court Holds Indigent Parents Have Constitutional Right to Counsel at Public Expense, July 1, 2026
- Free Phone Calls Saved Prisoners and Their Families More than $600 Million, Report Finds, July 1, 2026
- California Appeals Court Holds Defendant Cannot Be Penalized for Failing to Appear at Sentencing When He Was Being Held in Another County’s Jail on Preexisting Charges, July 1, 2026
- SCOTUS Reverses Mississippi Capital Conviction, July 1, 2026
More from these topics:
- L.A. County Begins Making Nearly $5 Billion in Payouts to Survivors of Sex Abuse in Juvenile Detention, Sept. 1, 2026. Sexual Assault, Staff-Prisoner Assault, Prisoner-Prisoner Assault, Guard Misconduct, Jail Misconduct, Settlements, Juvenile Offenses/Offenders.
- Florida DOC Rebuked for Seizing Prisoner’s Excessive Force Settlement to Cover Incarceration Liens, Sept. 1, 2026. Summary Judgment, Settlements, Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Trust Accounts, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights.
- $500,000 for Mentally Ill Detainee Beaten by Guard at Ohio Jail, Sept. 1, 2026. Guard Brutality/Beatings, Summary Judgment, Settlements, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Monell Liability.
- $3 Million Paid by San Diego County for Diabetic Detainee’s Jail Death; NaphCare Settles Separately for Undisclosed Amount, Sept. 1, 2026. Naphcare, Diabetes, Failure to Treat, Settlements, Medical Neglect/Malpractice.
- Michigan DOC Legal Payouts Top $7 Million in FY 2025, Less than One Percent of $2.15 Billion Operating Budget, Sept. 1, 2026. Statistics/Trends, Cost of Prison Systems, Damages, Settlements.
- Troubled Illinois Lockup Sees Guard Abuses, Prisoners on Hunger Strike, Sept. 1, 2026. Hunger Strikes, Guard Brutality/Beatings, Pepper Spray/Tear Gas, Restraints, Administrative Detention/Segregation.
- $11 Million Paid by Boston to Exonerated Prisoner for 37-Year Wrongful Incarceration, Sept. 1, 2026. Settlements, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment, Monell Liability, Withholding of Exculpatory Evidence.
- Hawai‘i Pays $600,000 for Prisoner’s Withdrawal Death, Sept. 1, 2026. Medication, Drug/Alcohol Withdrawal, Failure to Treat, Settlements, Medical Neglect/Malpractice.
- Three Detainees Die in Four Days at the Tarrant County Jail, Aug. 1, 2026. Jail Misconduct, Statistics/Trends, Wrongful Death, Compassionate Release.
- $3 Million Settlement Reached with BOP for Attorney’s Fees in Sex Abuse Class-Action from Now-Shuttered California “Rape Club”, Aug. 1, 2026. Staff-Prisoner Assault, Attorney Fee Awards, Settlements, Consent Decrees, Class Actions.

