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California Court of Appeal Finds Trial Court Abused Discretion in Denying Prisoner Compassionate Release and Reverses Order

Loaded on Oct. 1, 2026 by Sagi Schwartzberg published in Prison Legal News October, 2026, page 16
Filed under: Abuse of Discretion Standard, Insufficiency of the Evidence, Statutory Construction/Interpretation, Compassionate Release. Location: California.

by Sagi Schwartzberg

On May 28, 2026, the California Court of Appeal for the First Appellate District concluded that a trial court’s reliance on an old Board of Parole finding in denying James Brinston’s request for compassionate release was an abuse of discretion.

James Brinston was convicted …

 

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More from this issue:

  1. The Dramatic Increase in the Elderly Prison Population Is Fiscally and Morally Irresponsible, by Douglas Ankney
  2. From the Editor, by Paul Wright
  3. $3.75 Million Paid by Wisconsin After Mentally Ill Prisoner Dies of Dehydration, by Chuck Sharman
  4. Eleventh Circuit Reinstates Alabama Prisoner’s Excessive Prison Violence Claim, by Matthew Clarke
  5. Ninth Circuit Rules Favorably for Washington Prisoner Whose Writing Submission Was Censored, by Chuck Sharman
  6. San Francisco Jail Survey Exposes Abuse, Malnutrition and Constitutional Violations, by Jo Ellen Nott
  7. Second Circuit Affirms Denial of Qualified Immunity but Clarifies that 14th Amendment ‘Objective Reasonableness’ Is Standard of Review for Pretrial Detainee’s Claim of Sexual Abuse, by Douglas Ankney
  8. California Supreme Court Bail Ruling Cuts Some Jail Headcounts, by Chuck Sharman
  9. Eleventh Circuit Upholds Most of Relief Ordered in Class-Action Lawsuit Challenging Unconstitutionally Inadequate Mental Health Care in Alabama Prisons, by Matthew Clarke
  10. Class Action Certified in Lawsuit Alleging Raw Sewage Presence in Washington Jail, by David M. Reutter
  11. California Court of Appeal Finds Trial Court Abused Discretion in Denying Prisoner Compassionate Release and Reverses Order, by Sagi Schwartzberg
  12. $700,000 Paid by West Virginia for Jail Death, Claims Against Wexford Health Pending, by Chuck Sharman
  13. GEO Group Funnels Millions to Trump PAC Following Windfall ICE Contracts, by Jo Ellen Nott
  14. BOP Prisoner’s Claim Over Denied Medical Care Ruled Impermissible Bivens Extension, by Chuck Sharman
  15. CoreCivic’s Non-Binding Promises Leave Minnesota City Exposed, by Jo Ellen Nott
  16. $5 Million Paid by Washington for Attempted Rape of Seattle Woman by Mentally Ill Prisoner Released to Halfway House, by Chuck Sharman
  17. $250,000 Paid by Nevada to Former Prisoner Denied Colonoscopy Who Developed Stage IV Cancer, by Chuck Sharman
  18. Law Restoring Voting Rights to Some People with Felonies Takes Effect in Missouri, by Michael Thompson
  19. Widespread Abuse Uncovered at Network of Youth Prisons, by Michael Thompson
  20. Prisoners At Indiana’s “Speedway Slammer” Settle Conditions Suits for $1.2 Million, Whistleblower Alleges Staff Mistreatment, by Chuck Sharman
  21. Fourth Circuit Upholds Denial of Qualified Immunity to Jail Supervisors Who Ignored Detainee’s Cranial Abscesses, by Matthew Clarke
  22. $4,000 Awarded to Ohio Prisoner for Denied Records Requests, by Chuck Sharman
  23. Maryland Pays $314,000 for Stonewalling Public Records Requests in Prisoner’s Dehydration Death, by Chuck Sharman
  24. Prison Policy Initiative Report Finds Prison Policies Ignore Menopause Behind Bars, by Michael Thompson
  25. Fatal LAPD Arrests Show Systemic Failure in Handling Mental Health Crises, by Jo Ellen Nott
  26. Colorado Grants, Then Revokes Earned Time Credits, by Michael Thompson
  27. South Carolina Supreme Court Reverses Class Action Status in Prisoners’ Sexual Assault Lawsuit, by David M. Reutter
  28. Ninth Circuit Refuses to Stay Injunction in Detainees’ Challenge to Conditions at California ICE Lockup, by Chuck Sharman
  29. Eleventh Circuit Revives Pro Se Litigant’s § 1983 Lawsuit Despite His Three Strike Status Under the PLRA, by Sagi Schwartzberg
  30. Second Circuit Rules Eighth Amendment Governs Claims of Excessive Force Brought by Parole Violator, by David M. Reutter
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  32. Federal Jury Returns $763,000 Verdict Against Centurion for Indiana Prisoner’s Denied Kidney Disease Treatment, by Chuck Sharman
  33. Sixth Circuit: Qualified Immunity Granted to Guard in Delayed Treatment for Prisoner who Suffered Heart Attack, by David M. Reutter
  34. Nevada Reentry Nonprofit CEO Arrested for Sexual Assault, by Michael Thompson
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  36. Leak at Iowa Prison Leads to 15 Exposed to Hazardous Chemicals
  37. Report Finds State Prison Systems Fail to Provide Adequate Assistance to Obtain Release Documentation, by David M. Reutter
  38. Eighth Circuit Reverses District Court’s Denial of Motion to Dismiss Some Defendants from Lawsuit Over Missouri Prisoner’s Suicide, by Matthew Clarke
  39. Disabled Prisoners in New York Aren’t Receiving Entitled Accommodations, by Michael Thompson
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  42. Healthcare Still Lacking at Baltimore Jail Decades After Settlement, by Michael Thompson
  43. South Dakota Supreme Court Affirms Prisoner’s Simple Assault on Guard Conviction Despite Four-Second Skip in Surveillance Video Footage, by Sagi Schwartzberg
  44. Kentucky Department of Corrections Restricts Tablet Access, by Michael Thompson
  45. Ninth Circuit Reverses Dismissal of Prisoner’s ADA Complaint Alleging Denial of Toileting and Hygiene Services, by David M. Reutter
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  47. Wyoming Stops Sending Prisoners to Mississippi After Staffing Improves
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  50. Federal Court Orders Texas to Admit Incompetent Jailed Defendants to Mental Health Facilities Within 21 Days, by Matthew Clarke
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