by David M. Reutter
The death of a Black man who was Tasered multiple times at South Carolina’s Sheriff Al Cannon Detention Center in Charleston is the latest case to raise questions about law enforcement’s use of force in dealing with mentally ill prisoners. Likewise, the continued assertion that Tasers ...
by David M. Reutter
A $750,000 settlement was reached in the methamphetamine overdose death of a female South Dakota pretrial detainee. The lawsuit brought claims against two separate county jails, state troopers, and guards at the jails.
Sarah Lee Circle Bear, 24, was arrested on July 3, 2016, after a ...
by David M. Reutter
When the Florida Legislature opened for its annual 60-day session in March 2021, hopes were high that at least some of the criminal justice reform bills would pass. High on the list was the savings of about $140 million by closing four prisons. By the end ...
by David M. Reutter
Prisoners have faced a “substantially elevated total mortality risk during the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to the elevated risk for COVID-19 infection found in previous studies,” concluded a study titled, “Assessing the Mortality Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic in Florida State Prisons,” by Neal Marcos Marquez ...
by David M. Reutter
New Mexico’s Lea County paid $350,000 to settle a lawsuit alleging guards at the Lea County Detention Center (LCDC) failed to protect a pretrial detainee.
John Cordova was housed at LCDC on April 29, 2017, on a probation violation. Guards Joe Portillo and Dillon Phipps observed ...
by David M. Reutter
For many years, the Western New Mexico Correctional Facility (WNMCF) has had a “horrific and widespread” rodent infestation that makes the prison “a dangerous place.” Those allegations form the basis for a lawsuit filed in federal court by two former WNMCF prisoners.
The lawsuit was filed ...
by David M. Reutter
A California federal district court held that CoreCivic, Inc., must pay attorney fees in a defamation lawsuit. The court held the calculation of fees in abeyance until the resolution of appeals related to the dismissal and whether it could award fees.
The court’s April 6, 2021 ...
by David M. Reutter
The State of Washington Office of Corrections Ombuds (OCO) found in a January 14, 2021 report that the Department of Corrections (DOC) delayed cancer diagnosis that resulted in some prisoner deaths. Several other prisoners are expected to die as a result of the delay in treatment. ...
by David M. Reutter
A federal lawsuit alleges that Nexus Services, Inc., “preys on consumers held in federal detention centers by offering to pay for consumers’ immigration bonds to secure their release.” In exchange, the company “demands large upfront fees hefty monthly payments while concealing or most misrepresenting the true ...
by David M. Reutter
In affirming an Illinois district court’s order denying a motion for compassionate release, the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals held there was no procedural error in the failure to consider the movant’s argument that his skin color “elevates his risk from COVID-19.”
The court’s February 23, ...
