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Rikers Island Death Case Against City of New York Settles for $5.5 Million
by Derek Gilna
A wrongful death action filed by the decedent’s estate of a Rikers Island prisoner against the City of New York, the New York City Health and Hospitals Corp., Prison Health Services, and individual prison guard defendants, has settled for $5.5 million.
Eva Luckey, a …
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More from this issue:
- Milestone: Thirty Years of Prison Legal News and the Human Rights Defense Center, by Paul Wright
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Fifth Circuit Reinstates Lawsuit Over Texas Jail Prisoner’s Death, by Matthew Clarke
- Denied Medical Care During Pandemic, New Jersey Prisoner Treats Infected Wound With Bleach, by Dale Chappell
- Ninth Circuit: No Summary Judgment for Prison Officials Who Allegedly Allowed Attack on Nevada Prisoner, by David Reutter
- Lives at Stake as Pennsylvania County De-privatizes Prison, by David Reutter
- Coronavirus: A Second Wave of Infection, by Michael D. Cohen, MD
- Former Sheriff Joe Arpaio Loses Another Arizona Republican Primary, by Matthew Clarke
- Eleventh Circuit Vacates COVID-19 Injunction Against Miami Jail, by David Reutter
- Nebraska Declares Overcrowding Emergency in State Prisons, by Kevin Bliss
- Federal Judge Rules Prisoners Eligible for $1,200 Stimulus Checks; Application Deadline Extended to Nov. 21 for Online Filing, by Derek Gilna
- Fourth Circuit: Opening of Detainee’s Legal Mail Outside His Presence Violates Right to Free Speech, by David Reutter
- California Prison Guards Keep Jobs After Aiding Attacks on Sex Offenders, by Jayson Hawkins
- Texas: Prison Air Conditioning Needs Revisiting, by Edward Lyon
- Efforts to Keep COVID-19 Out of Montana Prisons Fuels Outbreaks in County Jails, by Alex Sakariassen
- Denial of Recruitment of Counsel for Wisconsin Prisoner Affirmed by Seventh Circuit, by David Reutter
- DOJ Finds Frequent Use of Excessive Force in Alabama Prisons, by David Reutter
- Third Circuit: District Court Erred in Ruling Against Pennsylvania Prisoner’s Civil Rights Complaint, by David Reutter
- Two-Thirds of Nevada Prisoners Confined in Arizona Private Prison Test Positive for COVID-19, by Mark Wilson
- New Jersey Guard Acquitted in Sex Scandal, by David Reutter
- Washington Prisoner’s State Public Records Act Lawsuit Results in His Freedom and $111,194 Award, by Matthew Clarke
- North Carolina Temporarily Closes Three Prisons for Lack of Guards; Final One Reopens During COVID-19 Pandemic, by Edward Lyon
- Second Circuit Reverses Summary Dismissal of Connecticut Prisoner’s Failure-to-Protect Lawsuit, by Matthew Clarke
- $225,000 Windfall in Lehigh County, Pa. But Officials Don’t Cut Jail Phone Costs, by David Reutter
- Pennsylvania Prisoner Loses Part of Leg, Wins Appeal in Precedential Grievance Process Case, by David Reutter
- Private Prison Industry Ramped Up Campaign Contributions, Favoring Republicans, by Derek Gilna
- Florida Spent $1.7 Million, and Counting, to Impede Felon Voting Rights, by David Reutter
- Investment Firm Buys Corizon, by Matthew Clarke
- $1.25 Million Settlement Against Tennessee County Over Sheriff’s Violations of Labor Law, by Douglas Ankney
- Violence at New York City’s Rikers Island Jail Increasing Even as Population Falls, by Edward Lyon
- Ankle Monitor Shortage at Chicago Jail Put Prisoner Releases During COVID in Limbo, by David Reutter
- Failed Michigan Jail Site to Host Innovation Center, by David Reutter
- Second Circuit: Denial of Exercise Over Four Months Defeats Summary Judgment, by David Reutter
- Report: Screening Failures Cited in COVID-19 Outbreak in California Prisons, by Kevin Bliss
- Rikers Island Death Case Against City of New York Settles for $5.5 Million, by Derek Gilna
- ICE Detainees Pepper-Sprayed Over Hunger Strike, by Daniel A. Rosen
- Families of 4 Alabama Prisoners Who Committed Suicide File Federal Lawsuit Against Prison Officials, by Matthew Clarke
- Eleventh Circuit: Florida’s Treatment Plan for Hepatitis C-Positive Prisoners Constitutional, by David Reutter
- Connecticut: Summary Judgment Denied in Deliberate Indifference Case Where Facial Lesion Turned Out To Be Skin Cancer, by Chad Marks
- Sixth Circuit Reverses and Allows Ohio Prisoner’s Civil Rights Lawsuit to Proceed, by David Reutter
- Fourth Circuit Orders Sealing of North Carolina Court’s Order to “Protect Defendant from Harm”, by David Reutter
- Mental Health Crisis in California’s Lock-Ups Worsens With COVID-19, by Edward Lyon
- Temporary Halt of Federal Prison Labor at National Parks, but New Policy Proposed To Resume It, by Jayson Hawkins
- Native Americans Protest Theft of Alcatraz Island, by Edward Lyon
- $70,000 Settlement in Private Firm’s Failure to Treat Arizona Prisoner’s Broken Wrist, by David Reutter
- Guard Violates Eighth Amendment by Brandishing Knife and Threatening Prisoner’s Life, by David Reutter
- Seventh Circuit Dismisses Summary Judgment for Defendants in Illinois Prisoner’s Lawsuit Over Beating, Choking, by David Reutter
- HRDC Files Civil Rights Lawsuit Against Colorado Sheriff for Censorship of Prisoner Publications, by Derek Gilna
- Captain Accused of Abusing Mentally Ill Prisoners Cleared in Internal Investigation, by Kevin Bliss
- New York City BOP Prisoner Dies After Being Pepper-Sprayed, by Kevin Bliss
- Former Pennsylvania Prison All Solitary with Silence Mandatory, by Edward Lyon
- Alabama Executes Non-Shooter in Police Killings, by David Reutter
- Former Angola Warden Burl Cain Appointed Head of Mississippi Prison System, by Matthew Clarke
- Massachusetts Jail Phone Cost Reductions Under Attack, by Edward Lyon
- News in Brief
More from Derek Gilna:
- Federal Judge in Louisiana Issues Sweeping Opinion Finding Numerous Eighth Amendment, ADA and RA Violations at Angola, April 1, 2022
- Human Rights Defense Center Prevails in Censorship Lawsuit Against Napa County Jail, California, Sept. 1, 2021
- California State Auditor’s Report Faults Counties for Waste and Poor Oversight of State Funds Used in “Public Safety Realignment”, Sept. 1, 2021
- The Fight Over Cellphones in Prisons Rages On, Sept. 1, 2021
- District Court Extends Armstrong Order to Five Additional California Prisons, Sept. 1, 2021
- HRDC Settles Censorship Lawsuit with Johnson County, Kansas Jail for $50,000 and Policy Changes, Aug. 1, 2021
- Virginia Prosecutors to Dismiss 400 Drug Convictions Tied to Disgraced Cop, July 15, 2021
- Discredited New York Police Detective’s False Testimony Causes the Dismissal of Close to 100 Drug Convictions, June 15, 2021
- D.C. Department of Forensic Sciences Firearms Examination Unit Under Fire, April 15, 2021
- Mississippi Joins Illinois and Few Other States Prioritizing Vaccination of State Prisoners to Slow Spread of COVID-19, April 1, 2021
More from these topics:
- Tulsa Jail Withholds Records Related to Detainee Deaths, April 1, 2026. Private Prisons, Wrongful Death, Suicides, Access to Media, Public Records Act.
- Wisconsin’s Incarcerated Population Has More Access to Opioid Treatment, But Still Missing in Eight County Jails, April 1, 2026. Medication, Drug/Alcohol Withdrawal, Drug Treatment/Rehab, Health care.
- Medical Audit at New Mexico Jail Once Again Finds Poor Level of Healthcare, March 1, 2026. Medication, Systemic Medical Neglect, Drug/Alcohol Withdrawal, Contagious Disease -- Misc., Staffing.
- Los Angeles County Restricts Opioid Treatment, Feb. 1, 2026. Medication, Systemic Medical Neglect, Failure to Treat, Drug Overdose, Drug Treatment/Rehab.
- $2.75 Million Paid by Washington County and NaphCare for Death of “Floridly Psychotic” Detainee Left Untreated in Jail for Months, Jan. 1, 2026. Naphcare, Medication, Systemic Medical Neglect, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Deliberate Indifference.
- Sixth Circuit Affirms Denial of Qualified Immunity to Jail Nurses in Suit Arising from Prisoner’s Death, Dec. 1, 2025. Medication, Failure to Treat, Qualified Immunity, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Deliberate Indifference.
- Iowa DOC Declines to Privatize State Prison Healthcare, Dec. 1, 2025. Medication, Private Contractors, Medical Records, Staffing, Inadequate Health Care Facilities.
- America’s Deadliest Jails: Tarrant County Edition, Nov. 1, 2025. Wrongful Death, Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death), Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Excessive Force (Wrongful Death).
- Trans Kentucky Prisoner Loses Bid to Block State’s New Ban on Hormone Replacement Therapy, Nov. 1, 2025. Medication, Transgender Medical Procedures, Cruel and Unusual Punishment, Need for Medical Consensus, Deliberate Indifference.
- Eleventh Circuit Announces New Deliberate Indifference Framework in Dismissing Georgia Prisoner’s Claim for Skipped Anti-Seizure Meds, July 15, 2025. Medication, Seizures, Failure to Treat.

