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No Qualified Immunity for Oregon Prison Officials’ COVID-19 Response; Class Certified
by Mark Wilson
"The law is clearly established that individuals in government custody have a constitutional right to be protected against a heightened exposure to serious easily communicable diseases,” concluded United States Magistrate Stacie F. Beckerman in denying Oregon prison officials qualified immunity for their coronavirus (COVID-19) response. …
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More from this issue:
- 25 Years of the Prison Litigation Reform Act, by John Boston
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Investigation Finds “Deadly Delays” in Cancer Diagnosis at Washington State Prisons, by David Reutter
- Whistleblowers: Software Bug Keeping Hundreds of Arizona Prisoners Beyond Release Dates, by Jimmy Jenkins
- How Sheriffs Are Extracting Wealth from People in Jail, by Katie Jane Fernelius
- Illinois First State to Abolish Cash Bail, by Daniel A. Rosen
- CFPB and Three States Sue Over Predatory Immigrant Bail and GPS Scam, by David Reutter
- Smart Communications Contract Reveals Plans for Expanding Privatized Prison Mail, by Kevin Bliss
- Scores of Ecuadoran Prisoners Die in Coordinated Melees
- Florida Supreme Court Disbars Attorney For Making Sex Films in Jail Visiting Room, by Matthew Clarke
- Justice Delayed in California Jails: Lengthy Pretrial Imprisonment Common, by Daniel A. Rosen
- New York State Law Ends Long-Term Solitary Confinement in Prisons and Jails, by Matthew Clarke
- $1,000 Award to Ohio Prisoner for Violation of Public Records Act
- Resisting a Prison Without End, by Jayson Hawkins, Panagioti Tsolkas
- Seventh Circuit Says Racial Disparity Argument ‘Too Weak to Require Discussion’ in COVID-Related Motion for Compassionate Release, by David Reutter
- Ohio Enacts Criminal Justice Reform in 2020, by David Reutter
- Seventh Circuit Reinstates Illinois DOC Prisoner’s Suit Against Wexford Psychiatrist, by Matthew Clarke
- $1.65 Million Settlement for Family of Prisoner Killed at Rikers Island
- Sixth Circuit Reinstates Lawsuit Over Kentucky Jail Prisoner’s Suicide, by Matthew Clarke
- Rebellion at GEO-Run Prison in New Mexico
- Louisiana Law School Counts Deaths Behind Bars Because State Won’t, by Daniel A. Rosen
- NYC Department of Corrections Continued Noncompliance to Consent Decree and Spending Nearly Half A Million Dollars Per Prisoner in 2020, by Kevin Bliss
- $11,000 Recovery for Asthmatic Indiana Prisoner in Denial of Treatment After Cell Block Fire
- Second Circuit Holds Control Unit Placement for Former Death Row Prisoners Unconstitutional Bill of Attainder, by David Reutter
- Minnesota Mothers to Receive More Bonding Time with Their Newborn Children, by Kevin Bliss
- South Carolina to Use Firing Squads to Execute Prisoners, by Keith Sanders
- Medical Update: COVID is Not Over, by Michael D. Cohen, MD
- America’s Biggest Jails Are Frontline Environmental Justice Communities, by Adam Mahoney
- Planned Massive Shortfall in Funding to Maintain Minnesota Prisons, by Anthony Accurso
- Federal Judge Rejects BOP’s Attempts to Keep Videos of Force-Feeding Prisoners at ADX Secret, by Dale Chappell
- Florida Prisons Face Ongoing Staff Shortages Due to Low Pay And Long Hours, by David Reutter
- HRDC Settles Censorship Lawsuit with Johnson County, Kansas Jail for $50,000 and Policy Changes, by Derek Gilna
- U.S. Department of Justice Publishes Statistics on Prisoners’ Deaths, by Matthew Clarke
- Virginia Federal Court Sentences Former Superintendent of Rockbridge County Jail to 51 Months in Prison for Brutality and Corruption
- No Qualified Immunity for Oregon Prison Officials’ COVID-19 Response; Class Certified, by Mark Wilson
- Illinois Prisoner Gets Mixed Results in Appeal of Suit Against Wexford and Doctors, by David Reutter
- Report Shows Official Misconduct Responsible for More than Half of Exonerations, by Dale Chappell
- Seven Guards Fired After Prisoner Dies in TX Jail, by Keith Sanders
- Virginia Prison Guards Attack Prisoners with Dogs, by Keith Sanders
- Connecticut Makes All Prison Communications Free, Makes History, by Daniel A. Rosen
- Orange County California Jail Guard Investigated for Burning Mentally Ill Prisoner, by Daniel A. Rosen
- Potential Radioactive Exposure to Manatee County Jail Prisoners in Florida, by Kevin Bliss
- Change in Good Time Makes Tens of Thousands of California Prisoners Eligible for Release, by Matthew Clarke
- Anti-Parole Whistleblower Prompts Investigation of Virginia Parole Board, by Casey Bastian
- No Mutual Assent Where Detainee Forced to Accept Release Card in HRDC Case, by David Reutter
- California Juvenile Court Erred in Removing Child from Imprisoned Father’s Care
- $550,000 in Damages Ordered to Woman Prisoner Raped by New York Guard
- News in Brief
More from Mark Wilson:
- Indiana Prisoner Sues Prison Abolition Group, Wins $1,097 Default Judgment, April 26, 2024
- Eighth Circuit Affirms Denial of Qualified Immunity to Minnesota Jail Guard Accused of Grabbing and Squeezing Detainee’s Penis, Feb. 1, 2024
- Former Oregon Prison Nurse Gets 30 Years for Raping Prisoners, Dec. 1, 2023
- After Ninth Circuit Refuses to Compel Arbitration, National Class Certified in HRDC’s Challenge to Jail and Prison Debit Card Fees, Oct. 15, 2023
- Seventh Circuit Revives Illinois Prisoner’s Claim Over Knee Surgery Delayed 29 Months, Oct. 15, 2023
- Fourth Circuit Reinstates North Carolina Prisoner’s Suit, Finding Grievance Procedure Availability an Open Question, Oct. 15, 2023
- Congress Forces BOP to Upgrade Security Cameras, Sept. 15, 2023
- Oregon Will Hold Release Hearings for 73 Prisoners Sentenced to LWOP as Juveniles, Sept. 15, 2023
- Senators Slam “Egregious” Prisoner Sexual Abuse by BOP Employees, Sept. 15, 2023
- Minnesota Supreme Court Denies Qualified Immunity for Delayed Transfer of Sex Offenders, Sept. 15, 2023
More from these topics:
- Fourth Circuit Revives North Carolina Prisoner’s Suit Blaming Lazy Guards for Assault by Detainee, May 1, 2026. Failure to Protect (General), Qualified Immunity, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Cruel and Unusual Punishment, Deliberate Indifference.
- Uncounted COVID Deaths Reveal a Troubling Truth About Official Death Records, May 1, 2026. Racial Discrimination, Medical Records, COVID-19, Statistics/Trends, Databases.
- $2.75 Million Paid by Washington County and NaphCare for Jail Detainee’s Suicide, April 1, 2026. Naphcare, Qualified Immunity, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Suicides, Deliberate Indifference.
- $10.3 Million Paid for Teen’s Death at Kansas Juvenile Detention Facility, April 1, 2026. Restraints, Qualified Immunity, Excessive Force (Wrongful Death), 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Wrongful Use of Force.
- Eighth Circuit Revives Case Against Guards Who Failed to Intervene As Chaplain Sexually Assaulted Arkansas Prisoner, March 1, 2026. Staff-Prisoner Assault, Failure to Protect (General), Prison Rape Elimination Act, Qualified Immunity, Failure to Train/Supervise.
- Sixth Circuit Revives Michigan Prisoner’s Challenge to Guard Tackle That Broke His Foot, March 1, 2026. Evidentiary Ruling (Disciplinary Hearings), Guard Brutality/Beatings, Summary Judgment, Qualified Immunity, Wrongful Use of Force.
- Louisiana Prisoner Sustains Claim Against Prison Doctor for Allowing Assignment to “Field Duty” Despite Known Ankle Injury, March 1, 2026. Inability to Work, Skeletal Injury, Summary Judgment, Qualified Immunity, Deliberate Indifference.
- Tenth Circuit Affirmed Denial of Guards Qualified Immunity in Disabled Detainee’s Fourteenth Amendment Claim, March 1, 2026. Failure to Treat, Qualified Immunity, Fourteenth Amendment, rights, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Deliberate Indifference.
- Michigan Claws Back $1.2 Million Paid to Wrongfully Convicted Former Prisoner, Feb. 1, 2026. Police Misconduct, Wrongful Imprisonment, Qualified Immunity, Forensic Sciences, Fabrication of Evidence.
- Ninth Circuit: Notice of Appeal of Order Denying Qualified Immunity Must Be Filed Within 30 Days of Entry, Feb. 1, 2026. Liberty Interests, Evidence, Qualified Immunity, Fourteenth Amendment, rights.

