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Internal Assessment Contradicts Public Claims About Women’s Prisons
Loaded on April 1, 2026
by Michael Thompson
published in Prison Legal News
April, 2026, page 36
Filed under:
DOC/BOP misconduct,
Failure to Treat,
Totality of Conditions,
Toxic Fumes/Chemicals,
Deliberate Indifference.
Location:
Michigan.
by Michael Thompson
Michigan’s only women’s prison “is infested with mold,” according to U.S. District Judge Stephen J. Murphy III. Three women incarcerated at Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility, Hope Zentz, Paula Bailey, and Krystal Clark, are suing the Michigan Department of Corrections (DOC) over the conditions at …
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More from this issue:
- Alabama’s Non-Solution to the Crisis Overtaking Its Prisons, by Douglas Ankney
- Colorado Governor Tells Lawmakers to Open New Prison
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- $667,000 Awarded to Muslim Missouri Prisoners Pepper-Sprayed for Praying, by Chuck Sharman
- Former Maine Prison Official Stole $2.4 Million Through Fraudulent Supply Orders
- Virginia Jail Suicide Results in $950,000 Settlement, Claims Against Wellpath still Pending, by Chuck Sharman
- The Cells Inside ‘One of the Most Archaic Prisons in the United States’, by Shakeil Price
- Massachusetts Settles Lawsuit with Promise to Release Jail Voting Data, by Chuck Sharman
- In Texas, Harris County Commissioners Approve $1.2 Million for Fourth Study of Jail Since 2020 After Dozens of Abuse Allegations, by Matthew Clarke
- “Large Fight” Broke Out at Alaska Prison After Downsizing Effort, by Jo Ellen Knott
- $1 Million Paid by Cuyahoga County for Detainee’s Preventable Suicide in Cleveland Jail, by Chuck Sharman
- Class Certification Granted to Suit Challenging Suspension of HALT Act in New York Prisons, by Chuck Sharman
- ICE Jails Denied Muslim Detainees’ Right to Celebrate Ramadan
- More Measles Cases Detected at Jails in New Mexico and Texas, by Jo Ellen Knott
- California Spends $300 Million Each Year Incarcerating Senior Citizens in Women’s Prisons, by Victoria Law
- Idaho Struggles to Respond to Devasting Report of Widespread Prisoner Sex Abuse, by Chuck Sharman
- Houston Jail Renews $38 Million Contract to Outsource Detainees to Private Lockups
- $2.75 Million Paid by Washington County and NaphCare for Jail Detainee’s Suicide, by Chuck Sharman
- Ohio Supreme Court Awards Prisoner $1,000 for Denied Records Request, by Chuck Sharman
- Texas Attorney General Clarifies Scope of Statute Requiring Outside Agency Investigation of Jail Deaths, by Matthew Clarke
- $1.5 Million Class-Action Settlement Reached in Texas Jail Over-Detention Case, by Chuck Sharman
- Missouri Prisons Called Out for Incomplete Death Records, Hellish Solitary Heat, by Chuck Sharman
- D.C. Judge Blocks Transfer of Biden-Commuted Federal Death Row Prisoners to “Supermax,” Citing Lack of Meaningful Due Process, by Matthew Clarke
- Eighth Circuit Revives Lawsuit Over Iowa Jail Detainee’s Suicide, by Matthew Clarke
- Oklahoma County Officials Move to Dissolve Jail Trust Created for Oversight
- Almost $1 Million in Settlements Paid to Three Nevada Prisoners, by Chuck Sharman
- Two Texas Women Charged for Using Plastic Crows in Smuggling Scheme
- Fourth Circuit to BOP Prisoner: Any “Disqualifying Offense” Means Zero FSA Credits, by Chuck Sharman
- California County Hires New Healthcare Company After Jail Deaths Under Wellpath
- New Illinois State Law Requires Prisons to Submit Annual Hospice Reports, by Michael Thompson
- At This Prison, Staffing Fluctuations Land Hardest on Lifers, by Jeffrey Shockley
- Internal Assessment Contradicts Public Claims About Women’s Prisons, by Michael Thompson
- Five Prisoners in Georgia Injured in Fight, Two Months After Three Prisoners Were Killed
- Groundbreaking Statistical Study of Pregnant Texas Jail Detainees Finds Over 400 Monthly, by Matthew Clarke
- Hawai’i Settles Prison Mental Healthcare Class-Action With $100,000 in Attorney’s Fees and Expert Inspection That Produces Damning Report, by Chuck Sharman
- Faults Found with Centurion in Kansas Four Years Ago Are Still Not Fixed, by Michael Thompson
- Montana Switches to Sending Prisoners to a Private Prison in Mississippi
- Death of Washington Jail Standards Bill Risks Repeat of $2.5 Million Settlement That Closed One County’s Jail, by Chuck Sharman
- $950,000 Settlement Reached for Pennsylvania Jail Detainee Repeatedly Pepper-Sprayed During Mental Health Episodes, by Chuck Sharman
- Unsafe Drinking Water at Multiple Texas Prisons Highlights Lack of Transparency, by Matthew Clarke
- First Circuit Revives Federal Prisoner’s Claim Against Rhode Island Lockup, by Chuck Sharman
- $10.3 Million Paid for Teen’s Death at Kansas Juvenile Detention Facility, by Chuck Sharman
- The Same Company that Built Guantanamo Bay Is Building Kansas City’s World Cup Jail
- ICE Settles Suit Over Opening Detainees’ Legal Mail, by Chuck Sharman
- Survey of Arkansas Jails Reveals Strained, Costly Health Care System, by Abbey Kim
- Federal Jury Awards $1,670,000 for Diabetic Detainee’s Preventable Death in Philadelphia Jail, YesCare Reaches Separate Confidential Settlement, by Chuck Sharman
- Mississippi DOC Retains Law Firm to Monitor VitalCore Contract, by Michael Thompson
- Idaho DOC Transfers Prisoners to Arizona Facility Run by CoreCivic
- Digital Tablet Shift Brings Added Cost, Lost Data to Prisoners in California
- Wisconsin’s Incarcerated Population Has More Access to Opioid Treatment, But Still Missing in Eight County Jails
- ICE Taps New Contractor to Run Deadly Detention Center in Texas
- More Than 40k 311 Calls From Rikers Go Into a Black Hole Every Year, by Reuven Blau, Kennedy Sessions
- Prisoners in Oklahoma Can Now Buy Vapes, Pouches from Commissary
- Watchdog Report Finds More than 1,500 Waiting for Specialty Care at Connecticut Prisons
- Tulsa Jail Withholds Records Related to Detainee Deaths
- Judge Orders Rikers Manager Must Fix Jail in Seven Years Or Less
- Analysts Recommend Closing California’s Soledad Prison
- Private Company Investigating Rapes at California ICE Detention Center Instead of Sheriff
- News in Brief
- Officials in Kansas Allow CoreCivic to Reopen Leavenworth Prison
More from Michael Thompson:
- Law Restoring Voting Rights to Some People with Felonies Takes Effect in Missouri, Oct. 1, 2026
- Widespread Abuse Uncovered at Network of Youth Prisons, Oct. 1, 2026
- Prison Policy Initiative Report Finds Prison Policies Ignore Menopause Behind Bars, Oct. 1, 2026
- Colorado Grants, Then Revokes Earned Time Credits, Oct. 1, 2026
- Prison Policy Initiative Report Finds Significant Health Outcomes from Past Incarceration, Oct. 1, 2026
- Nevada Reentry Nonprofit CEO Arrested for Sexual Assault, Oct. 1, 2026
- Disabled Prisoners in New York Aren’t Receiving Entitled Accommodations, Oct. 1, 2026
- Healthcare Still Lacking at Baltimore Jail Decades After Settlement, Oct. 1, 2026
- Kentucky Department of Corrections Restricts Tablet Access, Oct. 1, 2026
- North Carolina’s “Iryna’s Law” Leads to Jail Overcrowding, Sept. 1, 2026
More from these topics:
- Class Action Certified in Lawsuit Alleging Raw Sewage Presence in Washington Jail, Oct. 1, 2026. Plumbing, Sewage, Sanitation, Class Certification, Deliberate Indifference.
- $700,000 Paid by West Virginia for Jail Death, Claims Against Wexford Health Pending, Oct. 1, 2026. Wexford Health Services, Restraints, Settlements, Excessive Force (Wrongful Death), Deliberate Indifference.
- BOP Prisoner’s Claim Over Denied Medical Care Ruled Impermissible Bivens Extension, Oct. 1, 2026. OB/GYN, Failure to Treat, Administrative Exhaustion (PLRA), Grievances, Adequacy of Remedy.
- Fourth Circuit Upholds Denial of Qualified Immunity to Jail Supervisors Who Ignored Detainee’s Cranial Abscesses, Oct. 1, 2026. Failure to Treat, Infections, Qualified Immunity, Fourteenth Amendment, rights, Deliberate Indifference.
- Federal Jury Returns $763,000 Verdict Against Centurion for Indiana Prisoner’s Denied Kidney Disease Treatment, Oct. 1, 2026. Centurion, Medication, Pain, Failure to Treat, Deliberate Indifference.
- Sixth Circuit: Qualified Immunity Granted to Guard in Delayed Treatment for Prisoner who Suffered Heart Attack, Oct. 1, 2026. Pain, Cardiovascular, Failure to Treat, Qualified Immunity, Deliberate Indifference.
- Maryland Pays $314,000 for Stonewalling Public Records Requests in Prisoner’s Dehydration Death, Oct. 1, 2026. DOC/BOP misconduct, Water, Attorney Fee Awards, Settlements, Public Records Act.
- Last of Three Oklahoma Jail Death Settlements Totaling $66.5 Million Paid for Fatal Dehydration of “Cookie Queen”, Oct. 1, 2026. Diabetes, Settlements, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Deliberate Indifference.
- Tenth Circuit Vacates Award of Costs to Prison Officials, Revives Prisoner’s Claim Alleging Denial of Access to Functioning Toilets and Exposure to Other Prisoners’ Feces, Oct. 1, 2026. Plumbing, Sanitation, Summary Judgment, Costs, Deliberate Indifference.
- Eighth Circuit Reverses District Court’s Denial of Motion to Dismiss Some Defendants from Lawsuit Over Missouri Prisoner’s Suicide, Oct. 1, 2026. Qualified Immunity, Sovereign Immunity, Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death), Suicides, Deliberate Indifference.

