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Academics Find Prisoners Denied Access to Public Information
by Matt Clarke
On April 18, 2023, Loyola University’s College of Law published a paper detailing the ways prisoners are often denied access to public records that those not incarcerated can easily obtain. Professor Andrea Armstrong and Distinguished Professor of Law Dr. Norman C. Francis described how various …
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More from this issue:
- Breaking the Cycle of Understaffing, Lockdowns and Increased Violence in Prisons, by David Reutter
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Wexford Faces Liability for Indiana Prisoner’s Delayed Specialist Referral, by David Reutter
- After Ninth Circuit Refuses to Compel Arbitration, National Class Certified in HRDC’s Challenge to Jail and Prison Debit Card Fees, by Mark Wilson
- Convicted Sex Offender Now a Licensed Attorney in Washington State
- $110,000 Paid By Tennessee Jail to Women Allegedly Forced to Stage “Sex Shows” for Guard
- Unable to Post Bail, Detainee Starves to Death in Arkansas Jail, by David Reutter
- $1 Million Settlement for California Prisoners Used to Bait Guard Charged with Sexual Misconduct
- $30,000 Paid by Pennsylvania to Prisoner Who Alleged Guards Beat and Tortured Him, by Douglas Ankney
- Seventh Circuit Revives Illinois Prisoner’s Claim Over Knee Surgery Delayed 29 Months, by Mark Wilson
- Louisiana Prison Guard Helps Pregnant Prisoner and Learns That No Good Deed Goes Unpunished
- Number Held in U.S. Prisons and Jails Dipped in Pandemic’s Second Year, by Douglas Ankney
- 46 Honduran Prisoners Massacred in Their Cells
- $1.25 Million Settlement for California Jail Prisoner’s Loss of Limbs, by David Reutter
- Fourth Circuit Reinstates North Carolina Prisoner’s Suit, Finding Grievance Procedure Availability an Open Question, by Mark Wilson
- COVID-19 Increased Racial Disparities in Prisons and Jails
- Court Orders Preliminary Injunctive Relief for Transgender Massachusetts Prisoners, by Douglas Ankney
- Guantanamo Bay Detainees Subjected to Forced Rectal Feeding and Hydration, by Eike Blohm, MD
- Wrongly Imprisoned for Killing Oregon Prison Director, Frank Gable Finally Fully Freed
- Naphcare’s Lack of Care Leads to $26.75 Million Verdict for Washington Jail Death
- $2,060,000 Awarded to Former New York Prisoner Left Quadriplegic After Assault by Guards, by Douglas Ankney
- Ex-felons on Parole and Probation Now Allowed to Vote in Minnesota
- How Corporations Turned Prison Tablets Into a Predatory Scheme, by Tommaso Bardelli, Ruqaiyah Zarook, Derick McCarthy
- The Almost Unknown Turkey Bowl and Black Sheep, by Douglas Ankney
- Report Finds Prison a Factor in Falling U.S. Life Expectancy
- Third Prisoner Dies in 2023 at California’s New Folsom Prison
- Virginia Prisoner Wins Habeas Release on Ineffective Assistance of Counsel Claim, by Douglas Ankney
- Settlement Reached Over COVID-19 Measures, Home Confinement Releases at FCC Lompoc
- New York Jailhouse Lawyer Wins Resentencing, Release, by Benjamin Tschirhart
- CoreCivic Fails to Defeat California’s Anti-SLAPP Law at Ninth Circuit, Must Pay $45,630 in Attorney Fees
- Colorado One of Four States Making Phone Calls Free for Prisoners
- Sixth Circuit Revives Blind Tennessee Prisoner’s Suit Against DOC and CoreCivic
- $1.85 Million Approved for Tampa Man Wrongfully Imprisoned for 37 Years
- Suit Against Pennsylvania Jail and Controversial Trainer Down to Just Two Plaintiffs
- Almost $1.1 Million Awarded to One-Legged Pretrial Detainee Forced to Hop to California Jail Cell, by David Reutter
- Florida Solitary Confinement Lawsuit Dismissed, by David Reutter
- Former BOP Guard Gets Light Sentence for COVID-19 Fraud, by Douglas Ankney
- Academics Find Prisoners Denied Access to Public Information, by Matthew Clarke
- Citing Improvements at Mississippi State Prison at Parchman, Rappers Drop Suit, by Douglas Ankney
- Settlement Includes $78,000 in Damages Against Minnesota DOC for ADA Violations
- 400 Prisoners Relocated After Fire at Texas State Penitentiary
- Texas Death Row Prisoners Challenge Blanket Policy of Automatic Solitary Confinement, by Douglas Ankney
- Colorado Lawmakers Shut Down Sheriff’s Participation in ICE 287(g) Program
- JPay Denied Motion to Compel Arbitration in Suit Over Debit Release Cards
- Prisoner Health Update: Hemorrhoids, by Eike Blohm, MD
- Despite Prior Settlement Agreement, Sick Michigan Prisoners Still Forced to Wait for Medication in Cold and Rain, by Douglas Ankney
- Nearly 5,000 Sexual Victimizations Counted in Three Years in U.S. Prisons and Jails, by Douglas Ankney
- $3.25 Million Settlement Reached With Defendants Jailed in Missouri “Debtor’s Prison” for Unpaid Fines, Fees, by Matthew Clarke
- $2.125 Million Paid So Far for Virginia Prisoner’s Death from Treatable Aneurism, by Matthew Clarke
- San Francisco Jail First in Nation to Provide Detainees Tablets With Totally Free Content
- Utah Prisoner Blows Whistle on Abuse of Federal Grants, Leading to $1.55 Million Settlement – And New Law Restricting Prisoner Records Requests
- 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:
- Jail Oversight Body Stalled by New York Governor, Aug. 1, 2026. Government Misconduct, Corrections Audits, Prison Reform, Public Records, State Legislation.
- New Mexico Supreme Court Holds Corrections Department Regulations Do Not Exempt Use-Of-Force Documents from Public Records Disclosure, Aug. 1, 2026. Disclosure of Records, Public Records, Public Records Act, Statutory Construction/Interpretation, Authority and Jurisdiction.
- Detainee Deaths Went Unreported at Dallas County Jail, July 1, 2026. Jail Misconduct, Statistics/Trends, Databases, Public Records.
- Florida Supreme Court Announces “Results” of Postconviction DNA Testing Under § 925.11 Include Underlying Testing Data Necessary for Expert Analysis, Holding That No Additional Burden Applies Once a Motion for Testing Has Been Granted, June 1, 2026. DNA Testing/Samples, Disclosure of Records, Public Records, Forensic Sciences, Scientific Testimony or Evidence.
- Ohio Supreme Court Rules that Sheriff Did Not Violate Open Records Act and Declines to Award Damages to Prisoner, June 1, 2026. GEO Group/Wackenhut, Contempt (Civil Procedure), Disclosure of Records, Public Records, Public Records Act.
- They Thought They Were Leaving Prison Early. Then They Weren’t., June 1, 2026. Public Records, Overdetention, Sentences - Corrections or Modifications of, Credits, Concurrent and Consecutive Sentences.
- Oklahoma Supreme Court: Jail Trust Cannot Withhold Requested Records under Law Enforcement Exemption of ORA, May 1, 2026. Summary Judgment, Disclosure of Records, Public Records, Public Records Act, Statutory Construction/Interpretation.
- Ohio Supreme Court Awards Prisoner $1,000 for Denied Records Request, April 1, 2026. Administrative Exhaustion (PLRA), Damages, Public Records, Public Records Act.
- Exonerated Former Prisoner Wins Election for Chief Record Keeper in New Orleans, Jan. 1, 2026. Prisoner Legal Assistance, Juries, Public Records, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment.
- Over $222,000 in Legal Costs and Fees Awarded to HRDC in Florida Records Suit Against Centurion, Dec. 1, 2025. Attorney Fee Awards, Costs, Disclosure of Records, Public Records, Public Records Act.

