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Archive: 2026

February

• Most U.S. Prisoners Now Barred from Directly Receiving Physical Mail by Chuck Sharman (p 1)
• From the Editor by Paul Wright (p 9)
• Barbaric and Deadly Conditions Continue to Plague Los Angeles County Jails by Douglas Ankney (p 10)
• Washington County Pays $300,000 to Jail Detainee Denied Treatment for Kidney Stone by Chuck Sharman (p 11)
• New Hampshire Prison System Struggles to Hire Guards (p 11)
• Michigan Claws Back $1.2 Million Paid to Wrongfully Convicted Former Prisoner by Chuck Sharman (p 12)
• Dissenter Excoriates SCOTUS for Denying Certiorari in Challenge to Constitutionality of Nitrogen Hypoxia Execution by Matthew Clarke (p 13)
• Three Prisoners Killed in Fight at Georgia Prison (p 14)
• Report: Incarcerated Population in Rural Jails and Prisons At Risk of Losing Hospital Access by Michael Thompson (p 14)
• $450,000 Paid for Michigan Jail Detainee’s Fentanyl Death, Incarcerated Husband Prevails in Claim for Part of Payout by Chuck Sharman (p 15)
• North Carolina Parole Commission Agrees to Stop “Moving Goalposts” for Prisoners Who Committed Crime as Juveniles by Chuck Sharman (p 16)
• Escape from Georgia Jail Ends in Florida after Lyft Hijacking by Jo Ellen Nott (p 17)
• FCC Releases Final Version of Order Gutting 2024 Phone Cap Regulations by Michael Thompson (p 18)
• Half of South Dakota’s Prison Population Returns to Prison (p 18)
• D.C. Federal Court Holds Blocking Prison Reform Advocate’s Access to Federal Prisoners May Violate First Amendment and Due Process by Matthew Clarke (p 20)
• $2 Million Settlement Reached for 12-Year-Old’s Gang Rape in Detroit Juvenile Detention Center by Chuck Sharman (p 21)
• The St. Louis Jails Are Running Out of Guards by Ivy Scott (p 22)
• Virginia Prisoners Stuck Waiting for Education Programs by Anthony Accurso (p 24)
• Killings Inside Mississippi’s Prisons Continue Unabated But Report Prompts DOC to Reopen Investigations by Douglas Ankney (p 26)
• California Appeals Court Rules in Favor of Ripped Off Prisoner by Michael Thompson (p 27)
• Alaska Deaths in Custody Tie Record High (p 28)
• Los Angeles County Restricts Opioid Treatment by Michael Thompson (p 28)
• Federal Death Row Prisoners Granted Clemency by Biden Are Facing Retaliation by Trump by Michael Thompson (p 30)
• Eleventh Circuit Holds Estate Cannot Sue Jailers Who Followed Medical Personnel Advice That Led to Detainee’s Death by Matthew Clarke (p 31)
• Cuyahoga County Receives Over $846,000 Refund from Securus Technologies (p 33)
• HRDC Sues Minnesota DOC Over Censorship Policy by Robert Haughn (p 33)
• Sixth Circuit Reinstates Lawsuit Over Failure to Properly Classify Violent Prisoners at Kentucky Jail by Matthew Clarke (p 34)
• Competency Crisis in Missouri’s Jails by Douglas Ankney (p 35)
• Alabama and Wexford Health Pay Undisclosed Settlement for Delays Costing Prisoner Partial Foot Amputation by Chuck Sharman (p 36)
• Eleventh Circuit Holds Alabama County May Be Liable for Policy of Providing Inadequate Jail Medical Care by Matthew Clarke (p 37)
• Punished for Bleeding: How Periods in Prison Become a Trap by Candace Norwood (p 39)
• Tenth Circuit Reverses Summary Dismissal of Claim Over Prisoner’s Suicide in Oklahoma Jail by Matthew Clarke (p 41)
• Ninth Circuit: Notice of Appeal of Order Denying Qualified Immunity Must Be Filed Within 30 Days of Entry by Douglas Ankney (p 42)
• Two Mississippi Prisons Lose Power During Winter Storm (p 43)
• Delaware Settles Suit Over Depriving Young Prisoners of Special Education by Chuck Sharman (p 44)
• Deportation of Kenyan Priest Working as Texas Prison Guard Highlights TDCJ’s Dependence on Immigrant Staff by Matthew Clarke (p 44)
• Differing Judicial Outcomes for the New York Guards Who Killed Robert Brooks by Jo Ellen Nott (p 46)
• New York State Prisons Turning Away Visitors with Tampons After Scan (p 46)
• Georgia Grand Jury Dings Augusta Jail for Overcrowding Days Before Violent Detainee Assault by Chuck Sharman (p 48)
• Oklahoma Prisoner Who Escaped Through Hole Killed by Sheriff (p 49)
• Ninth Circuit Reinstates Wheelchair-Bound Washington State Prisoner’s Suit Over Failure to Accommodate Disabilities During Transport by Matthew Clarke (p 49)
• After Exposing Prison Horrors, Incarcerated Whistleblowers Are Moved to Solitary by Katie Rose Quandt (p 51)
• Amid ‘Catastrophic’ Shortage, Psychologists Flee Federal Prisons in Droves by Beth Schwartzapfel (p 52)
• County Jail in Oklahoma Accused of Coercing Detainees to Convert to Christianity (p 53)
• Federal Court Strikes Much of Virginia’s Felony Voting Restriction by Chuck Sharman (p 54)
• Arkansas Bans Outside Reading Material Sent to Prisons by Jo Ellen Nott (p 55)
• The New York Prison System’s Culture of Cruelty and Impunity by Michael Thompson (p 56)
• Report on Baltimore Jail Reveals Human Waste Dripped from Ceilings (p 57)
• Pennsylvania County Renews $8 Million Contract with PrimeCare Despite Settlements (p 57)
• “Critical Labor Shortage” Declared at Two Rural Prisons in Nevada (p 57)
• Idaho Prisons Are Full. Costs for Incarcerating Inmates in Jails and Out of State Are Skyrocketing by Laura Guido (p 58)
• California Oversight Agency Hasn’t Finished a Single Review of Jail Deaths (p 60)
• New York State Moves to Dismiss Hundreds of Prison Sexual Assault Lawsuits by Jo Ellen Nott (p 61)
• Missouri Prisoners Forced to Shovel Snow in Subzero Temperatures (p 61)
• News in Brief (p 62)
• United States Postal Service Declares Postmarks Could Be Delayed (p 62)

January

• Shadow Prisons: How Civil Commitment Leads to Longer Confinement by Chuck Sharman (p 0)
• From the Editor by Paul Wright (p 9)
• Ninth Circuit Hands Partial Victory to NaphCare, Remanding Much of $27 Million Jury Verdict in Washington Jail Death Case by Chuck Sharman (p 10)
• The DOJ Orders Prison Inspectors to Drop LGBTQ+ Protections (p 11)
• Class Certified in Challenge to Mailed Book Ban at Indianapolis Jail by Chuck Sharman (p 11)
• $450,000 Paid by Missouri County for Jail Detainee’s Death After 11 Days Without Medical Attention by Chuck Sharman (p 12)
• Study Finds Parole Hearings and Grants Continue to Fall by Chuck Sharman (p 13)
• HRDC Sues New Mexico County for Violating 10-­Year-­Old Settlement of Censorship Suit by Chuck Sharman (p 14)
• 2025 Was a Deadly Year for Veterans Behind Bars (p 14)
• Fifth Circuit Rules Against Louisiana Prisoner Seeking to Recoup Money Made at Angola Prison Rodeo by Douglas Ankney (p 15)
• Massive $112 Million Jury Verdict for Detainees Held in New York Jail Past Release Date on ICE Detainers by Chuck Sharman (p 16)
• New York City Mayor’s Order Opening Rikers Island to ICE Declared Illegal by Chuck Sharman (p 17)
• Slender Man Stabber’s Escape Prompts “Serious Questions” for Wisconsin DOC (p 18)
• $404,000 Verdict for Ohio Prisoner Brutalized by Trio of Guards, Kept in Solitary for Two Years by Chuck Sharman (p 18)
• Report on “Pay-­to-­Stay” Fees Makes Strong Case for Their Repeal by Douglas Ankney (p 20)
• Exonerated Former Prisoner Wins Election for Chief Record Keeper in New Orleans (p 21)
• HRDC Sues Washington Jail for Rejecting PLN and Other Publications by Chuck Sharman (p 21)
• Maryland Agrees to Pay $30,000 to Prisoner Who Was Beaten by Guards While Handcuffed by Douglas Ankney (p 22)
• Eleventh Circuit Upholds Dismissal of Six Female Alabama Jail Detainees’ Sexual Assault Suit by Matthew Clarke (p 23)
• Sixth Circuit Affirms Denial of Qualified Immunity for Michigan Jailer Accused of Retaliatory Assault by Chuck Sharman (p 24)
• Almost $28.3 Million Awarded from NaphCare for Washington Jail Detainee Who Lost Leg to Untreated Gangrene by Chuck Sharman (p 25)
• Last of 16 Sentenced in California Prison Aryan Brotherhood Case, As Lawyer Learns He Was Targeted in Murder Plot by Chuck Sharman (p 26)
• New York City Jails Face Mounting Death Toll Ahead of Likely Receivership (p 27)
• $2.75 Million Paid by Washington County and NaphCare for Death of “Floridly Psychotic” Detainee Left Untreated in Jail for Months by Chuck Sharman (p 28)
• New Jail in Oklahoma Is Costing More than Triple the Amount Voters Approved (p 29)
• $200,000 for Detainee Thrown in “Rollover” Solitary Without Food or Water at Minnesota Jail by Chuck Sharman (p 31)
• Alabama Supreme Court Denies DOC’s Improper Venue Objection by Douglas Ankney (p 32)
• $4,652 for Jewish Nevada Prisoner Denied Passover Meal by Chuck Sharman (p 33)
• Oklahoma DOC Refuses to Publicly Release Body Camera Footage (p 34)
• Georgia Bristles at Federal Law that Prohibits Drone Interceptions (p 34)
• BOP Announces New Conditional Placement Date Calculation by Chuck Sharman (p 35)
• Arkansas Guards Can Now Work as Immigration Enforcers (p 37)
• Chicago Pays Exonerated Prisoners $7.5 Million, Bringing Total to $33.75 Million for Wrongful Convictions by Chuck Sharman (p 37)
• Pennsylvania County and Wellpath Pay Over $1.4 Million to Settle Claims of Four Former Jail Detainees, Including Three Who Died by Suicide by Chuck Sharman (p 38)
• Guards in Los Angeles County Now Wearing Body Cameras (p 39)
• Third Circuit Rules Awarding BOP Prisoners 54 Days of Good Time Per Year Is Pro-­Rated by Douglas Ankney (p 40)
• Report Shows How Prison Gerrymanders Distort Democracy Across U.S. by Chuck Sharman (p 41)
• $3.3 Million Verdict for Detainee’s Fatal Fentanyl Overdose in Southern California Jail by Chuck Sharman (p 42)
• Report Slams South Carolina Jail for Violating State Rules (p 43)
• SCOTUS Hears Oral Arguments on Rastafarian Hair-­Cutting Case by Michael Thompson (p 44)
• $939,000 for Nevada Prisoner Left in Wheelchair by Delayed Back Pain Treatment by Anthony Accurso (p 44)
• Wisconsin DOC Is Not Tracking Work Release Data (p 46)
• $4 Million Paid to Former Rikers Island Detainee Whose Reports of Repeated Rapes Were Ignored by Chuck Sharman (p 46)
• U.S. District Court in Arizona Grants Summary Judgment in Favor of Prisoner Denial of Forms for Challenging 455 Days of Solitary by Douglas Ankney (p 48)
• Wisconsin Appeals Court Upholds Dismissal of Detainee’s Jail Food Lawsuit by Michael Thompson (p 50)
• Amnesty International Report Claims Torture and Enforced Disappearances at “Alligator Alcatraz” (p 50)
• California Funds $38 Million Pilot Program to Investigate Methods for Cooling Three Prisons by Matthew Clarke (p 52)
• “We’re Broken”: As Federal Prisons Run Low on Food and Toilet Paper, Corrections Officers Are Leaving in Droves for ICE by Keri Blakinger (p 54)
• Labor Coalition in Minnesota Demands Disney Contractor Pay Prisoners Minimum Wage (p 56)
• As California Limits Water Use, People in Prison Face Punishment for Showering by Steve Brooks, Olivia Hefferman (p 57)
• $600,000 Awarded So Far in Disgraced Georgia Sheriff’s Trial for Abusing Detainee in Restraint Chair by Chuck Sharman (p 60)
• Soaring Medical Costs in Washington Jails by Michael Thompson (p 61)
• How I Learned to Transcribe Braille in Prison by Nathan Gray (p 62)
• News in Brief (p 63)