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$150,000 Paid by Jacksonville for Mother of Five’s Jail Suicide
by Chuck Sharman
Under an agreement filed with the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida on April 10, 2025, Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters agreed to pay $150,000 to the Estate of Esther Truax, a mother of five who died by suicide while in custody of …
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More from this issue:
- America’s Deadliest Jails: Tarrant County Edition, by Anthony Accurso
- Washington Prisoners Gain Access to Crisis Hotline
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- HRDC’s Washington Jail Debit-Release Card Suit Survives Summary Judgment, by Chuck Sharman
- $11 Million Paid to Estate of Mentally Ill Illinois Jail Detainee Who Lost 60 Pounds During 85-Day Incarceration, by Chuck Sharman
- Dying Mississippi Prisoner Wins Preservation Testimony in Suit Blaming Terminal Cancer on Exposure to Janitorial Chemicals, by Chuck Sharman
- Missouri Blocks Spiritual Advisors from Prison Pastor’s Execution, by Jo Ellen Nott
- Ninth Circuit Finds No Bivens Extension Needed for Federal Prisoner Prescribed Water and Exercise for Thyroid Storms, by Chuck Sharman
- Trans Kentucky Prisoner Loses Bid to Block State’s New Ban on Hormone Replacement Therapy, by Chuck Sharman
- Enormous $14 Million Settlement Reached by Los Angeles County with Former Prisoner Exonerated After 20 Years, by Chuck Sharman
- San Diego County Files Unusual Suit Against NaphCare Over Jail Detainee’s Murder, by Chuck Sharman
- For Delay in Summoning Medical Care for Detainees, Alabama Jailers Granted Immunity But California Trooper Headed to Trial, by Chuck Sharman
- Seventh Circuit Rules Against Prisoner’s Deliberate Indifference Claim Over Wexford Health’s Poor Psychiatric Care, by Michael Thompson
- Sixth Circuit Clarifies What Constitutes PLRA “Strike” and Reinstates Michigan Prisoner’s Lawsuit, by Matthew Clarke
- $2.4 Million Paid to Indiana Prisoners Sickened With Legionnaire’s Disease by Contaminated Water, by Chuck Sharman
- Body-Worn Camera Program for Guards Expands to all Maryland Prisons, by Chuck Sharman
- CoreCivic Pays $82,500 for First COVID-19 Death at San Diego ICE Lockup, by Chuck Sharman
- Wisconsin DOC Ordered to Provide Programming for Pregnant Prisoners—34 Years After Law Was Passed, by Chuck Sharman
- Securus Loses Bid to Dismiss HRDC Price-Fixing Suit, by Chuck Sharman
- $150,000 Paid by Jacksonville for Mother of Five’s Jail Suicide, by Chuck Sharman
- Federal Injunction Bars ICE from Crowding Detainees in Unsanitary “Hold” Rooms in New York City Office, by Chuck Sharman
- While Mentally Ill Rikers Island Detainee Lay Dying, Staff Sprayed Air Freshener, Fudged Cell Checks, by Chuck Sharman
- SCOTUS Overturns Oklahoma Prisoner’s Death Sentence After More than 25 Years on Death Row, by Douglas Ankney
- $1.8 Million Settlement Reached Following CDCR Data Breach, by Chuck Sharman
- North Carolina Prison Officials Run Out the Clock On Trans Prisoner’s Vulvoplasty, by Chuck Sharman
- Seventh Circuit Dismisses Jail Detainee Suicide Case for Lack of Showing Deliberate Indifference, by Anthony Accurso
- Fourth Circuit Rules in Favor of Prisoner’s Eligibility for Time Credits, by Douglas Ankney
- Jailhouse Lawyer Gets 16-1/2-Year Sentence for Defrauding Prisoner “Clients”, by Chuck Sharman
- Federal Government, CoreCivic Slow-Walk Class-Action Challenges to Forced Labor of ICE Detainees, by Chuck Sharman
- Oklahoma County Jailers Lose Bids to Derail Three Suits Over Detainee Murders, by Chuck Sharman
- Ohio Appoints Special Prosecutor to Investigate Double Amputee’s Restraint and Death
- Fifth Circuit Remands Louisiana Detainee’s Medical Grievance Case, by Michael Thompson
- South Dakota Approves $650 Million New Prison Construction
- Eighth Circuit Orders Preliminary Injunction Requiring Minnesota to Reinstate Program Teaching Biblical “Authentic Manhood”, by Matthew Clarke
- Appeals Court Rules Michigan’s Tolling Provision Is Not Inconsistent with the PLRA, by Douglas Ankney
- California’s Attorney General Is Suing Los Angeles County Jails Over “Inhumane Conditions”, by Michael Thompson
- FCC Issues Proposed Rule Permitting Cellphone Jammers in Prisons and Jails, by Chuck Sharman
- Preliminary Injunction Halts Solitary Confinement of Mentally Ill Prisoners at New York Lockup Where Wildcat Guard Strike Began, by Chuck Sharman
- Florida Sheriff Fires Five Guards for Two Cases of Detainee Abuse
- $5.5 Million Paid for Two Withdrawal Deaths at Washington Jail, by Chuck Sharman
- $950,000 Awarded to Trans Maryland Prisoner Dropped on Her Face by Guards, by Douglas Ankney
- Seventh Circuit Affirms Liberty Interest in Harsh Solitary Confinement Case, by Michael Thompson
- Eleventh Circuit Overturns 1990 Alabama Death Sentence Over Racially Biased Jury Selection; ACLU Report Shows It Is Still Happening, by Matthew Clarke
- Eleventh Circuit Declines to Extend to Summary Judgment Proceedings a Rule Requiring District Courts to Notify Pro Se Litigants, by Douglas Ankney
- BOP Cancels Union Rights for Prison Guards
- $4 Million Verdict Returned in Colorado Jail Suicide Case, by Chuck Sharman
- $100,000 Settlement Reached Between Imprisoned BOP Guard and Prisoners He Raped, by Chuck Sharman
- Fifth Circuit Dismisses Sex Abuse Claims Filed by Three Texas Prisoners Against Guard, by Chuck Sharman
- Nearly $528,000 Paid by Kansas Jail to Detainees Raped by Guards, by Chuck Sharman
- Two Re-Entry Non-Profit Leaders in Tennessee and Massachusetts Accused of Criminal Charges
- New York Jury Convicts Former Guard for Robert Brooks’ Taped Killing
- The Last Escaped Detainee from the New Orleans Jail Was Arrested in an Atlanta Crawlspace
- California Approves Higher Wage for Prisoner Firefighters (But Still Underpays)
- Former Prisoners’ Challenge to Virginia Constitution’s Felony Disenfranchisement Clause Allowed to Proceed, by Douglas Ankney
- $3.6 Million Paid by Minnesota County After Hemophiliac Jail Detainee Died from Brain Bleed, by Chuck Sharman
- Appeals Court Allows Illinois Prisoner’s Suit for Failure to Exhaust Administrative Remedies, by Douglas Ankney
- FCC Votes For Dramatic Hike to Prison Phone Call Rates, by Chuck Sharman
- News in Brief
More from Chuck Sharman:
- $3.25 Million Verdict in New York Against Jail Medical Profiteer Armor Health, July 1, 2026
- After Spoliation Sanction, CoreCivic Settles Suit Over Suicide in New Mexico ICE Lockup, July 1, 2026
- Conviction Tossed for Former Alabama Prisoner Paroled After 42 Years, July 1, 2026
- SCOTUS Continues to Hack Away At First Step Act, July 1, 2026
- California Supreme Court Limits Money Bail for Nonviolent Charges, July 1, 2026
- Alabama Barred from Executing Prisoner by Nitrogen Hypoxia, July 1, 2026
- Fifth Circuit Kills Louisiana Prison Medical and Mental Health Care Reform, July 1, 2026
- SCOTUS Shuts Down GEO Group Bid for Immunity in Suit by Colorado ICE Detainees, July 1, 2026
- $25,000 Paid to Former New York Jail Detainee Subjected to Delayed Healthcare and Denied Mental Healthcare— Despite Seven Suicide Attempts, July 1, 2026
- Prisoners’ Risk of Death In Custody More than Doubles in Solitary Confinement, July 1, 2026
More from these topics:
- He Died in a Florida Jail. The Company in Charge Should Have Sent Him to the Hospital, Experts Say., July 1, 2026. Armor Correctional Health Services, Systemic Medical Neglect, Medical Neglect/Malpractice.
- Eighth Circuit Revives § 1983 Complaint Alleging Jail Detainees’ Death from Stroke was Due to Deliberate Indifference and Failure to Train, July 1, 2026. Systemic Medical Neglect, Failure to Treat, Eighth Amendment, Failure to Train/Supervise, Deliberate Indifference.
- $25,000 Paid to Former New York Jail Detainee Subjected to Delayed Healthcare and Denied Mental Healthcare— Despite Seven Suicide Attempts, July 1, 2026. Failure to Treat, Conditions of Confinement, Mental Health, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Deliberate Indifference.
- Tenth Circuit Upholds $33 Million Jury Award in Suit Over Detainee’s Horrific Death in Oklahoma County Jail, July 1, 2026. Systemic Medical Neglect, Failure to Treat, Failure to Train/Supervise, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Deliberate Indifference.
- Eighth Circuit Revives Prisoner Lawsuit over Conditions of Confinement, July 1, 2026. Conditions of Confinement, Due Process, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Prisoners' Rights, Administrative Detention/Segregation.
- Three Women Died at a Michigan Prison in Less than a Month, July 1, 2026. Systemic Medical Neglect, Failure to Treat, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Deliberate Indifference.
- Video Shows Guards Watched as Oklahoma Detainee Died in Cell, July 1, 2026. Corrections Corporation of America/CoreCivic, Contractor Misconduct, Guard Misconduct, Failure to Protect (General), Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death).
- After Spoliation Sanction, CoreCivic Settles Suit Over Suicide in New Mexico ICE Lockup, July 1, 2026. Corrections Corporation of America/CoreCivic, Discovery, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Suicides.
- FTC Substantiates Allegations Against ViaPath Related to Data Breach and Orders Remedial Action, June 1, 2026. Contractor Misconduct, Trust Accounts, Telephone Monitoring, Deliberate Indifference, Global Tel*Link Corp.
- Study Shows That Suicide Intervention During and After Incarceration Reduces Suicide Attempts by 55%, June 1, 2026. Statistics/Trends, Suicides, Health care.

