×
You've used up your 3 free articles for this month. Subscribe today.
Alabama Plan to Relieve Prison Overcrowding: Tap COVID-19 Funds to Build “Mega-Prisons”
by Jo Ellen Nott
When Alabama Governor Kay Ivey (R) signed legislation in October 2021 to take $400 million of the state’s pandemic relief funds from the American Rescue Plan to build a trio of massive prisons, it was an attempt to assuage federal officials who have been …
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:
- Deaths and Violence Mount at Overcrowded Alabama Prisons While Parole Rate Hits New Low, by Kevin Bliss, Jo Ellen Nott
- Alabama Plan to Relieve Prison Overcrowding: Tap COVID-19 Funds to Build “Mega-Prisons”, by Jo Ellen Nott
- Fourth Circuit Refuses to Reinstate Suit by NC Jail Detainee Alleging Denial of Access to Grievance System and Timely Medical Care Prisoner Didn’t Ask the Court to Extend Kingsley Protections, by Keith Sanders
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Death by Incarceration: Study Reveals High Death Rates Inside NY’s State Prisons, by Keith Sanders
- John Boston, The PLRA Handbook: Law and Practice Under the Prison Litigation Reform Act, by Michael Mushlin
- Centurion Health Supplants Corizon in Missouri After Court Ruling, by Keith Sanders
- Extreme Sentences for Women in the U.S.: An Overview, by Ashleigh Dye
- Frozen in Place: How Winter Storms Push Texas Jails and Prisons to the Brink, by Tyler Hicks
- Texas Rangers Often Lackadaisical in Prisoner Death Investigations, by Matthew Clarke
- Federal Judge in Louisiana Issues Sweeping Opinion Finding Numerous Eighth Amendment, ADA and RA Violations at Angola, by Derek Gilna
- ICE Settles Florida Detention Facility COVID-19 Class Action, All Detainees Offered Vaccination, by Mark Wilson
- Massachusetts Appellate Court Reinstates Prisoner’s Lawsuit Over Food Substitution, by Matthew Clarke
- $14.3 Million in Costs, Attorney Fees and Interest Awarded Against GEO Group in Suits for Not Paying Minimum Wage to Immigrant Detainee Workers in Washington, by Matthew Clarke
- Prison Telecom Giant GTL Agrees to $67 Million Settlement in Class-Action Over Inactive Account Seizure Policy, by Anthony Accurso
- After Two Detainee Deaths, CoreCivic Hit With $2,500 Daily Fine for Chronically Short-Staffed Florida Jail
- Eighth Circuit Denies Qualified Immunity to Private Companies Providing Missouri Prisoner’s Health Care, by Matthew Clarke
- $1.65 Million Settlement Reached in Connecticut Prisoner’s Death from Untreated Lupus, by David Reutter
- CFPB Report: ‘Criminal Justice Financial Ecosystem Exploits Families at Every Stage’: Finds ‘Products and Services Rife with Burdensome Fees and Lack of Choice’, by Chuck Sharman
- $325,000 to Detainee Assaulted at East Texas Jail, 90 Days to Former Deputy Who Beat Him While Restrained in Wheelchair, by Jo Ellen Nott
- No Charges So Far Against Former Arizona Corrections Director After Boozy Standoff with Police, by Jo Ellen Nott
- $1.1 Million Colorado Initiative Set to Assist Prisoners With More Employment Opportunities Upon Release, by Keith Sanders
- With $2.95 Million Settlement, San Diego County Jail Racks Up Over $15 Million in Wrongful Death Payments, by Jacob Barrett
- $1.5 Million Awarded for Failure to Protect Rikers Jail Prisoner Who Was Attacked Repeatedly, by Kevin Bliss
- California Supreme Court Reclassifies Clemency Records, No Longer Confidential, by Keith Sanders
- Private Prison Firm Revenues Soar on “Tailwind” of Immigrant Detainees, by Chuck Sharman
- Vermont Hep-C Settlement Agreement Provides Direct-Acting Antivirals to Infected Prisoners, by David Reutter
- $170,000 Damages and Fees As New Jersey Prisons Settle Transgender Lawsuit With New Policy, by Jayson Hawkins
- Ninth Circuit Overturns California Law Banning Private Prisons, by Kevin Bliss
- Medical Paroles Revoked in California and Massachusetts, by Matthew Clarke
- $170,000 in Attorney’s Fees, Solitary Confinement Reforms Achieved in Settlement of Maine Prisoner’s Lawsuits, by Matthew Clarke
- $325,000 Paid by Colorado County to Jail Detainee Brutalized by Guards Equipped with Controversial Training, by Chuck Sharman
- Third Circuit Says Mixed Dismissal of Civil Rights Action Not a Strike Under PLRA, by David Reutter
- Federal Court Sanctions Wexford for Discovery Abuse in Illinois Prisoner’s Suit, by Matthew Clarke
- Tenth Circuit Denies Qualified Immunity to Colorado Prison Officials Who Shut Down Native American Religious Activities, by Jayson Hawkins
- Advocating for Objective Standards in a Post-Kingsley World, by Megha Ram
- $199,000 Awarded to California Detainee Assaulted by Santa Clara County Jail Guard, by Matthew Clarke
- $781 Settlement Paid to Oregon Prisoner Over Censorship of ‘Sexually Explicit’ Text Message
- Ninth Circuit: California Jail Prisoners Have No Constitutional Right Per Se to Outdoor Recreation and Direct Sunlight, by Matthew Clarke
- $100,000 Paid by Pennsylvania DOC to Family of Pro Se Prisoner Litigant Who Committed Suicide, by Kevin Bliss
- Settlement Relieves Death Row Isolation in Louisiana: Four Hours Daily Out of Cell, Five Hours Per Week in New Yard, by Jayson Hawkins
- News In Brief
- $1 Million Settlement in Inadequate Nutrition Class-Action Against New York Jail, by David Reutter
More from Jo Ellen Nott:
- Leaked Video Footage Shows California Prison Guards Engaged in Retaliatory Assault, March 1, 2026
- Texas Prisoner Declared Innocent 70 Years After Execution, March 1, 2026
- Maryland Prisons Reel from Growing Number of Prisoner Deaths, March 1, 2026
- Escape from Georgia Jail Ends in Florida after Lyft Hijacking, Feb. 1, 2026
- Differing Judicial Outcomes for the New York Guards Who Killed Robert Brooks, Feb. 1, 2026
- Arkansas Bans Outside Reading Material Sent to Prisons, Feb. 1, 2026
- New York State Moves to Dismiss Hundreds of Prison Sexual Assault Lawsuits, Feb. 1, 2026
- Federal Funds Now Available for Police Drone Purchases, Jan. 1, 2026
- Jury Returns Record $80 Million Verdict for Wrongful Conviction Based on DA Misconduct, Dec. 15, 2025
- The Legal Fight for Homeowner Compensation After SWAT Raids, Dec. 15, 2025
More from these topics:
- Colorado Law Intended to Reduce Prison Population Hasn’t Improved Conditions, March 1, 2026. Overcrowding, Parole, halfway houses, Reduction of Prison Population.
- Report Finds Persistent Overcrowding Drives Cascade of Problems at Atlanta’s Fulton County Jail, March 1, 2026. Overcrowding, Staffing, Pretrial Detention and Detainees, Bail/Pretrial Release, Indictment/Information.
- U.S. Jails Hold 52,000 Detainees for Nothing More than “Failure to Appear”, March 1, 2026. Criminal justice system reform, Statistics/Trends, Cost of Prison Systems, Bail/Pretrial Release, Arrest/Arraignment.
- Georgia Grand Jury Scolds Augusta Jail for Overcrowding Days Before Violent Detainee Assault, March 1, 2026. Private Contractors, Failure to Protect (General), Overcrowding, Staffing, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness).
- Showers at St. Louis County Jail Riddled with Mold, Report Finds, March 1, 2026. Food, Overcrowding, Plumbing, Water, Sanitation.
- Washington Appellate Court Uses Personal Restraint Petitions Mooted by Prisoners’ Transfers to Order Remedial Measures at Troubled Juvenile Lockup, March 1, 2026. Overcrowding, Staffing, Plumbing, Lockdowns, Juvenile Prisons.
- Barbaric and Deadly Conditions Continue to Plague Los Angeles County Jails, Feb. 1, 2026. Systemic Medical Neglect, Totality of Conditions, Overcrowding, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Deliberate Indifference.
- Georgia Grand Jury Dings Augusta Jail for Overcrowding Days Before Violent Detainee Assault, Feb. 1, 2026. Private Contractors, Failure to Protect (General), Overcrowding, Staffing, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness).
- Idaho Prisons Are Full. Costs for Incarcerating Inmates in Jails and Out of State Are Skyrocketing, Feb. 1, 2026. Out of State Transfers, Statistics/Trends, Cost of Prison Systems, Overcrowding.
- Report on “Pay-to-Stay” Fees Makes Strong Case for Their Repeal, Jan. 1, 2026. Racial Discrimination, Medical Expenses, Cost of Prison Systems, housing, Ability to Pay.

