More from this issue:

1. Jail Suicides in Massachusetts Point to National Crisis: Challenging Legislatures to Say Not One More, by Jennifer Honig
2. From the Editor, by Paul Wright
3. Government Refuses to Follow Federal Court’s Discovery Order After Being Caught Recording Attorney Meetings with Prisoners at Leavenworth, by Dale Chappell
4. Mississippi Joins Illinois and Few Other States Prioritizing Vaccination of State Prisoners to Slow Spread of COVID-19, by Derek Gilna
5. Pandemic Medical Update: “Herd Immunity” at Prisons?, by Michael D. Cohen, MD
6. Texas Winter Storm Freezes Plumbing, Power and Prisoners, by Matthew Clarke
7. Massachusetts Governor Ends Good Time Offer for Prisoners Taking COVID-19 Vaccine, by David Reutter
8. Confidential Settlement in Case Involving Alleged Pattern of Racist Misconduct in Michigan Prisons, by Casey Bastian
9. Connecticut Lawmakers Refuse to Address Corrections Issues During Pandemic, by Anthony Accurso
10. California Trans Women Struggle For Protection Under Prison Rape Elimination Act, by Edward Lyon
11. Oklahoma Prisoners Call for Better Nutrition, by Kevin Bliss
12. Florida Jail Administrators Fired After Woman Gives Birth in Cell, by Daniel A. Rosen
13. Holiday Cards for Prisoners: Let’s End Collective Punishment in U.S. Prisons, by Sandy Rozek
14. COVID-19 Inspired Ban on Prison Visits in Texas Ends, by Chad Marks
15. Virginia Settles Two Lawsuits Over Misuse of Solitary Confinement, by Daniel A. Rosen
16. COVID-19 Pandemic Makes Job Hunting Especially Difficult for Ex-Offenders, by Kevin Bliss
17. Activist, Political Prisoner, and Journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal Diagnosed With COVID-19, Energizing Calls for His Release, by Juliette LaMarr
18. U.S. Sues Alabama Over Prison Conditions, by David Reutter
19. Florida Prison Guard Indicted in Prisoner Death by Blunt Force Trauma, by David Reutter
20. Michigan Begins Video Visits During Coronavirus Pandemic, by David Reutter
21. Hawaii Fails to Provide Video of Two Prison Disturbances, by Edward Lyon
22. California Prison Factories Fined For Exposing Unwitting Workers to COVID-19, by Mark Wilson
23. "Conservative New York County Enacts Progressive Transgender Prisoner Policy", by Mark Wilson
24. Sixth Circuit Upholds Prisoner’s 18 U.S.C. § 111 Conviction for Assaulting Federally Contracted Private Prison Guard, by Matthew Clarke
25. After 36 Years in a Louisiana Prison for a Rape He Didn’t Commit, Archie Williams Wins Freedom — and a TV Show Spotlight, by Casey Bastian
26. COVID-19 Depletes State Prison Staffs Nationwide, Forcing Consolidation of Facilities and Increasing Risk to All, by Derek Gilna
27. COVID-19 Continues Rampage Through Pennsylvania State Prisons, by Derek Gilna
28. Alabama Jails and Prisoners Swamped With COVID-Related Problems, by Daniel A. Rosen
29. $105,000 Settlement in Wisconsin Prisoner’s Excessive Force Claim, by David Reutter
30. How States Exclude People With Criminal Records From Jury Service, by Dale Chappell
31. Study Shows Misaligned Economic Incentives Fuel Mass Incarceration, by Matthew Clarke
32. California Enacts Legislation Strengthening Protections for LGBTQ Prisoners, by Matthew Clarke
33. Baltimore Demolishes Maryland’s Oldest Penitentiary, Burying Its Nostalgia And Nightmares, by Michael Fortino, Ph.D
34. Books: “Let The Lord Sort Them: The Rise and Fall of the Death Penalty”, by Robert Dunham
35. Florida Senator Wants to Keep Ex-Prisoners from Earning the $15 Minimum Wage Increase, by Kevin Bliss
36. Former Prisoner Becomes Activist for LBGTQ Rights in California Prisons
37. Parnall Correctional Facility in Michigan Copes with Scabies Outbreak, by Kevin Bliss
38. People in jails are using more phone minutes during the COVID-19 pandemic, despite decreased jail populations, by Andrea Fenster
39. Fourth Circuit: Deaf North Carolina Prisoner Should be Allowed Direct Videophone Calls to Communicate with Deaf Community, by David Reutter
40. Ransomware Attack on GEO Group Exposes Sensitive Information, by Matthew Clarke
41. Hundreds of Virginia Inmates Await Parole Consideration Under New Law, by Daniel A. Rosen
42. Colorado’s Governor Bows to Pressure in Denying State Prisoners Priority COVID-19 Vaccinations, by Derek Gilna
43. Experts Divided on Drug Court Effectiveness, by Kevin Bliss
44. More Than 40 Immigrants Have Died in ICE Custody, by Anthony Accurso
45. Secrecy Surrounded Flurry of Late-Term Federal Executions Under Donald Trump, by Derek Gilna
46. New Advocacy Group for New Mexico Prisoners Created, by Dale Chappell
47. Vermont Prisoner’s Death Under Investigation: Did Implicit Bias Play Role?, by Kevin Bliss
48. News in Brief

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:

• 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.
• Severely Ill Prisoners in Hawai‘i Denied Early Release Due to State Policy, Sept. 1, 2026. Cost of Prison Systems, housing, Restrictions, discrimination, Compassionate Release.
• “Safe Inside” Review Paid for by DOJ Found Prisons Grew Much Deadlier in Five Year-Period, Aug. 1, 2026. Work Conditions/Safety, Statistics/Trends, Cost of Prison Systems, Staffing, Assaults on Staff.
• Prison Policy Initiative Updates Its “Money of Mass Incarceration” Report, Aug. 1, 2026. Statistics/Trends, Cost of Prison Systems, Forfeiture, Effects of Mass Incarceration, Ability to Pay.
• Overtime Cuts Lead to Reduced Programming in California Prisons, Aug. 1, 2026. Cost of Prison Systems, Education, Rehabilitation/Recidivism.
• Missouri Bill Increases Mandatory Minimums, Expands Prosecutors’ Role in Juvenile Court, July 1, 2026. Cost of Prison Systems, Prosecutors, State Legislation, Juvenile Offenses/Offenders, Mandatory Minimum Sentence.
• Number of Prisoners Awaiting Transfer from Jail Surging in Indiana, June 1, 2026. Transfers, Statistics/Trends, Cost of Prison Systems, Overcrowding, Jail Specific.
• Arkansas Supreme Court Bows to Governor’s Board of Correction Takeover, June 1, 2026. Government Misconduct, Cost of Prison Systems, Settlements, State Legislation, Authority and Jurisdiction.
• New Hampshire Officials Halt $700 Million Prison Replacement, May 1, 2026. Cost of Prison Systems, Totality of Conditions, Plumbing, Sanitation, Vermin.
• Pennsylvania Closes Its Second-Oldest Prison, May 1, 2026. Cost of Prison Systems, Totality of Conditions, Boot Camps, Plumbing, Reduction of Prison Population.