More from this issue:

1. Spit Hoods, Modern Legacy of Torture, by Anthony Accurso
2. From the Editor
3. NYC Rehires Former Head of Rikers Island Lockup Where Guard Assault Left Detainee Quadriplegic
4. “Like Being Back in Jail”: Wisconsin Returns Released Sex Offenders to Lifetime GPS Monitoring
5. Identities Stolen From Virginia Jail Detainees For $341,205 COVID-19 Fraud
6. Alabama Guard, Prisoners Among 13 Sentenced in Phone Scam and Drug-Smuggling Ring
7. Facing Bankruptcy, Securus Promotes Prison Tablets
8. Fired Missouri Guards Charged with Murder in Prisoner’s Suffocation Death
9. California Resentences 15 Condemned Prisoners to Life Without Parole
10. Former Virginia Prisoners Win Back Denied Sentence Credits, Sue Over Delayed Release
11. California Prisons Ban High-Tech Lie Detector
12. Eighth Circuit Asked to Block New FCC Rules Capping Prison Phone Rates and Eliminating Ancillary Fees and Kickbacks
13. Florida DOC Failed to Investigate Background of Guard Convicted in Mass Shooting
14. $4.77 Million Settlement for Three Alaska Prisoners Exonerated of Murder After 18 Years, by David Reutter
15. Alabama Jail Accused of Granting Detainee’s Medical Bond Just Before Death to Avoid Costly Medical Care, by David Reutter
16. Kentucky Prisoners Take Advantage of Securus Software Glitch for $1 Million
17. $28.75 Million Settlement Paid by New York City in Suit Alleging Rikers Guards Stood by and Watched Detainee Hang Himself, by Douglas Ankney
18. Fifth Circuit Revives Texas Prisoner’s Suit Alleging Interference With His Muslim Religious Practice, by David Reutter
19. Colorado Becomes First State to Require Polling Stations in Jails
20. Two More West Virginia Jailers Plead Guilty in Detainee’s Homicide
21. Ninth Circuit: No Qualified Immunity for California Jail Nurse Who Cleared Detainee for Release Just Before His Suicide, by Douglas Ankney
22. San Bernardino Jail Partially Released from Court Monitoring After Paying Another $150,000 in Settlements for Detainee Deaths
23. Building Carcerality, by Dana McKinney White, Lisa Haber-Thomson
24. Corizon Health Bankruptcy Settlement Grows, But Only by $21 Million
25. California Throws Prisoners Under the Bus to Adopt New Heat Rules
26. PPI Releases 10th Anniversary Report on Mass Incarceration in the U.S.
27. Florida Prisoners Exposed to Cancer-Causing Chemicals
28. Two Hurricanes in Two Weeks Threaten Prisoners and Jail Detainees in Six States
29. Public Defender Files Habeas Petitions for Detainees at “Horrific” Baltimore Lockup
30. Another South Carolina Prisoner Convicted of “Sextortion” of U.S. Military Personnel
31. $23,138 Plus Out-Of-State Transfer for Virginia Prisoner Who Accused Guards of Excessive Force and Altering Video
32. Wellpath Sanctioned for Destroying Evidence in Two Oregon Jail Death Suits, by David Reutter
33. Eighth Circuit Upholds Denial of Qualified Immunity to Minnesota Guard Accused of Assaulting Restrained and Compliant Prisoner, by Matthew Clarke
34. In Oregon Case, Ninth Circuit Limits Pretrial Detention Without Counsel to Seven Days
35. Two Former Georgia Sheriffs Sentenced for Misconduct, Related $5 Million Settlement Approved, by David Reutter
36. Washington Appellate Court Reverses Parole Revocation Based on Hearsay
37. Illinois Prisoners Stage Hunger Strikes Over DOC Failure to Implement New Sentence Reduction Law
38. BOP Ends “Blast” Messages on TRULINCS
39. Maryland and Wexford Health Pay $200,000 to Prisoner Denied Care and Partially Blinded, by Douglas Ankney
40. Another Payout Brings Arizona Prisoner’s Total to $92,850
41. After $750,000 Settlement, Georgia Guard Sued Second Time For Letting One Prisoner Murder Another, by Douglas Ankney
42. SCOTUS Stays Texas Execution With 20 Minutes to Spare, by Matthew Clarke
43. 50 Years After Starting “Scared Straight,” Former N.J. Prison Warden “Would Do It Again”
44. Angola Prisoners Granted Limited Relief From “Farm Line” Work
45. Armor Health Liquidates Assets—to Firm’s Founder
46. Court Strikes Washington Statute to Regulate GEO Group’s Notorious ICE Lockup
47. Milwaukee County Pays $1.05 Million Judgment for Bankrupt Armor Correctional Health to Former Jail Detainee
48. California Changes Prisoner Property Policy After Suit Filed Alleging Gender Discrimination Against Men, by Douglas Ankney
49. $1.2 Million Settlement Reached in HRDC Censorship Suit Against North Carolina Prison System
50. Fifth Circuit Reinstates Former Federal Prisoner’s Suit Over Assault By Guards at Louisiana Lockup, by Matthew Clarke
51. $1.5 Million Settlement Approved in Chicago Jail Suicide Case
52. $500 Jury Verdict for Pennsylvania Prisoner After Federal Court Clarifies DOC Grievance Procedures
53. California Pays $4.45 Million to Prisoners Allegedly Raped by Guards, by Anthony Accurso
54. Third Circuit Affirms Qualified Immunity for Pennsylvania Guards Who Pepper-Sprayed Asthmatic Prisoner
55. News in Brief

More from Douglas Ankney:

• Pregnant Women Detained in Jail: The Hideous Story of In-Custody Births, May 1, 2026
• Idaho DOC Director Denies Verified Report of Rampant Sexual Abuse of Women Prisoners by Staff, May 1, 2026
• Illinois Jail Reprimanded for Denying Detainees Mail Based on Media Content, P.O. Box Return Address, Settles Detainees’ Suit with $111,825 Payment of Legal Fees, May 1, 2026
• Oklahoma Supreme Court: Jail Trust Cannot Withhold Requested Records under Law Enforcement Exemption of ORA, May 1, 2026
• Tenth Circuit Holds Prior California Child Pornography Conviction Does Not Trigger Federal Mandatory Minimum Because State Statute Encompasses Conduct Beyond Federal Definition Under Categorical Approach, April 1, 2026
• Kentucky Supreme Court Clarifies Parole Board May Delegate Final Revocation Hearings to Administrative Law Judges but Holds Due Process Requires Parolees Be Permitted to File Exceptions to ALJ Findings Before Board Renders a Final Revocation Decision, April 1, 2026
• New York Court of Appeals Holds Generic Physical Description Insufficient to Justify Pursuit in Mistaken Identity Case, and Suspect’s Flight Cannot Support Reasonable Suspicion Absent Evidence He Knew He Was Fleeing Law Enforcement, April 1, 2026
• Montana Supreme Court Holds Defendant’s Sentence Must Be Vacated Where District Court Premised Sentence on Defendant’s Exercise of Constitutional Rights to Jury Trial, Silence, and Against Self-Incrimination, April 1, 2026
• Fifth Circuit Holds Texas Sexual Assault of a Child Statute Sweeps More Broadly Than Federal SORNA Tier Offenses, March 1, 2026
• Delaware Supreme Court Announces Four-Part Plain Error Framework, Aligning Prejudice Standard With Federal Approach Requiring Reasonable Probability of Different Outcome, March 1, 2026

More from these topics:

• ACLU Threatens New Lawsuit After Indiana County’s Repeated Failures to Abide by 17-Year-Old Settlement Agreement, May 1, 2026. Overcrowding, Exercise, Sanitation, Bedding, Settlements.
• 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.
• $1.25 Million Paid for Special Needs Teen’s Fatal Beating in Houston Jail, May 1, 2026. Prisoner-Prisoner Assault, Failure to Protect (General), Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death), Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Cruel and Unusual Punishment.
• Seventh Circuit Upholds Liability but Reverses Damages in Lawsuit Over Illinois Warden and Investigator Using Prisoner as Bait to Catch Staff Member Raping Her, May 1, 2026. Staff-Prisoner Assault, Failure to Protect (General), Damages, Evidentiary Ruling, Cruel and Unusual Punishment.
• “Large Fight” Broke Out at Alaska Prison After Downsizing Effort, April 1, 2026. Transfers, Cost of Prison Systems, Totality of Conditions, Failure to Protect (General), Overcrowding.
• Massachusetts Settles Lawsuit with Promise to Release Jail Voting Data, April 1, 2026. Voting, Advocacy, Settlements, Voting Rights, Felon Disenfranchisement Statute.
• Eighth Circuit Revives Lawsuit Over Iowa Jail Detainee’s Suicide, April 1, 2026. Summary Judgment, Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death), Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Suicides.
• Death of Washington Jail Standards Bill Risks Repeat of $2.5 Million Settlement That Closed One County’s Jail, April 1, 2026. Staffing, Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death), Suicides, Staff Training, State Legislation.
• Virginia Jail Suicide Results in $950,000 Settlement, Claims Against Wellpath still Pending, April 1, 2026. Private Contractors, Medical Records, Settlements, Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death), Suicides.
• Five Prisoners in Georgia Injured in Fight, Two Months After Three Prisoners Were Killed, April 1, 2026. Prison/Jail Murders, Totality of Conditions, Failure to Protect (General), Staffing.