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Articles by David Reutter

Pennsylvania: Settlement Means Better Care for Severely Mentally Ill Prisoners

Pennsylvania: Settlement Means Better Care for Severely Mentally Ill Prisoners

by David M. Reutter and Derek Gilna

Severely mentally ill prisoners in Pennsylvania state prisons will receive improved treatment and live in better conditions following the settlement of a civil rights lawsuit filed by the Disability Rights Network of Pennsylvania (DRNPA) against the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (PDOC). The agreement, reached on January 5, 2015, follows improvements made by the PDOC after the suit was filed in March 2013.

“We are extremely pleased with the settlement,” said DRNPA Chief Executive Officer Peri Jude Radecic. “It guarantees that inmates with SMI (severe mental illness) in our state will be free of the horrific conditions of the RHU (restricted housing units) and will receive appropriate mental health treatment and other services. Now they will be able to maintain their mental stability, take advantage of the parole-eligibility programming, and serve their sentences in a way that does not punish them for merely having a serious mental illness.”

The 36-page settlement resolves DRNPA’s lawsuit alleging that Pennsylvania’s practice of segregating severely mentally ill prisoners in restricted housing violated the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. [See: PLN, April 2013, p.34]. The suit claimed that prison ...

Pennsylvania Detainee’s Estate Claims Financial Incentive Motive for Denial of Medical Care; $325,000 Settlement

Pennsylvania Detainee’s Estate Claims Financial Incentive Motive for Denial of Medical Care; $325,000 Settlement

by David Reutter

A Pennsylvania federal district court ordered medical personnel employed by Correctional Medical Care, Inc. (CMC) to face claims brought by the estate of a pre-trial detainee who died from alleged deliberate indifference to ...

New York: $450,000 in Awards to Two Prisoners for Failure to Treat Muscle Tears

New York: $450,000 in Awards to Two Prisoners for Failure to Treat Muscle Tears

by David Reutter

A New York Court of Claims has awarded $250,000 to a former prisoner in a lawsuit claiming inadequate treatment for a ruptured Achilles tendon, and $200,000 to another prisoner for a torn biceps ...

Two Florida Guards Charged in Assault of Prisoner

Two Florida Guards Charged in Assault of Prisoner

by David Reutter

Two former guards from Florida’s Pinellas County Jail were arrested and charged with official misconduct after one of them assaulted a prisoner.

As prisoner Casio Burton, 28, was in the process of being transferred on October 4, 2013, to the Pasco County Jail to face pending charges, he raised his hand to question guard Mark Capanna, 44, about his visitation list. Guard Klaus P.Reinert, 40, responded by coming out of the jail control using profanity to ask Burton what he wanted.

After that exchange, Reinert returned to the control room. Burton, once again, tried to gain Capanna’s attention. Reinert again came out of the control room and argued with Burton, and then Reinert punched Burton in the face. In retaliation, Burton struck Reinert, knocking him down. The fight only ended when Capanna broke it up.

Neither guard followed jail policy; they failed to report the incident or document the use of force. Detectives began an investigation after several prisoners who witnessed the fight reported it to other guards.

Once the investigation began, Capanna and Reinert wrote fabricated reports denying a physical altercation. Rather, they wrote that Reinert slipped on ...

Warden’s Overtime Reduction Plan Backfires

Warden’s Overtime Reduction Plan Backfires

by David Reutter

Pennsylvania’s Monroe County Correctional Facility (MCCF) has been financially burdened in recent years by overtime pay to guards. To reduce that drain on resources, MCCF’s warden entered negotiations with the guards’ union with a plan to reduce overtime. That plan, however, has backfired.

Overtime at MCCF cost taxpayers $1.1 million in 2011. One guard earned $48,000 in overtime that year, and two other guards doubled their salary with overtime. As MCCF’s staff is usually too small to accommodate unanticipated absences, guards would voluntarily sign up for overtime. But, some of these volunteer guards failed to show up for those shifts.

“Prior to this current (labor) contract, which went into effect January 2012, there was nothing in place to make officers think twice about singing up for overtime and then deciding they did not want to work it, “ said MCCF Warden Donna Asure.

“During (contract) negotiations, I brought my concerns to the table, as there were no ramifications to the officers who signed up for overtime and then call out,” said Asure. “We discussed many options and the union finally agreed that if an officer called off for an overtime shift they’d ...

Settlement Requires Michigan Jail to Provide Recreation and Equal Treatment

Settlement Requires Michigan Jail to Provide Recreation and Equal Treatment

by David Reutter

The Isabella County Correctional Facility (ICCF) agreed to provide prisoners out-of-cell recreation time as part of the settlement agreement of a civil suit brought by the ACLU of Michigan on behalf of ICCF prisoners. The settlement provides ...

Four Alabama Guards Receive Prison Sentences for Beating Prisoner to Death

Four Alabama Guards Receive Prison Sentences for Beating Prisoner to Death

by David Reutter

An Alabama federal district court sentenced four state prison guards to prison for their actions in the beating death of a prisoner and the subsequent attempt to cover it up. One guard was sentenced to 30 years; the sentences for the others range from 5 to 7 years.

Prisoner Rocrast Mack, 24, was serving a 20-year drug conviction sentence at Alabama’s medium-security Ventress Correctional Institution. As he lay on his bunk on Aug. 4, 2010, a female guard hit him for inappropriately touching himself. He hit her back, giving her a bloody lip. She called for help, saying Mack had jumped her.

According to evidence at trial, Lieutenant Michael Smith, 39, assaulted Mack in his office, repeatedly striking him with a baton and stomping and kicking him. On one occasion, Smith swung the baton like a baseball bat, hitting Mack in the back of the head. Even after Mack was in the infirmary, Smith stomped on Mack’s head as he lay on the floor. He died the next day at the local hospital. More details are available in PLN’s previous article. [See PLN, Jul. 2012, p. ...

Federal Court Releases County Commissioner Convicted of Fraud

Federal Court Releases County Commissioner Convicted of Fraud

by David Reutter

Citing “age (87) and deteriorating health,” an Alabama federal district court reduced the prison sentence of a former county commissioner convicted of corruption. The court reduced the sentence to time served and ordered his release on supervised release.

Former Jefferson County Commissioner Jewell Chris McNair was among 21 people convicted in the $3 billion sewer scandal in Alabama’s most populous county. McNair was convicted in April 2006 of bribery and conspiracy. He later pleaded guilty to soliciting $140,000 in bribes while overseeing the sewer project.

While appealing his conviction in 2008, McNair suffered a minor stroke. He tried to avoid prison on the grounds of his age and health, but in April 2011 the federal court ordered him to serve a 5-year prison term.

The court relented on August 29, 2013, and ordered McNair’s immediate release once his family could assure his health for allowed travel from a federal prison medical facility in Minnesota to Birmingham. He was released that day.

The release came after the Obama administration requested it on grounds of compassion. McNair, whose daughter Denise was one of three girls killed in the 1963 bombing of ...

New Orleans’ Effort to Vacate Consent Decree Fails

New Orleans’ Effort to Vacate Consent Decree Fails

by David M. Reutter

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a Louisiana federal district court’s order denying the City of New Orleans’ (City) motion to vacate a consent decree related to past practices of the New Orleans Police Department (NOPD). Also discussed in the case was the consent decree entered between the Department of Justice and the Orleans Parish Prison (OPP) for the construction of a new jail building.

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) began an investigation in May 2010 into alleged constitutional violations by the NOPD. That investigation began at the invitation of New Orleans Mayor Mitchell Landrieu, and on the same day the DOJ filed its complaint in federal court. The DOJ and the City agreed to a proposed consent decree.

As the action progressed, the City urged the court to approve the decree. When the court held a January 11, 2013 status conference, the City expressed “buyer’s remorse,” making an oral request to withdraw from the NOPD consent decree. The court, notwithstanding the City’s change of heart, approved the decree and denied the City’s subsequent motion to vacate it.

As the same time, the DOJ was also ...

Michigan Must Comply with Graham and Miller

Michigan Must Comply with Graham and Miller

by David M. Reutter

A Michigan federal district court ordered Governor Rick Snyder to provide a “fair, meaningful, and realistic” opportunity for parole to all prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment for crimes committed while children. The order follows the court’s January 2013 finding that Michigan’s mandatory sentencing scheme that denies parole to children convicted of certain crimes is unconstitutional.

“Courts have repeatedly made it clear that incarcerating children and throwing away the key is cruel and unusual punishment,” said Deborah LaBelle, the lead attorney in the lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union. “Today the court demanded that the state of Michigan take action to comply with the Constitution and Supreme Court precedent set almost two years ago. It’s now up to the state to develop a process that is meaningful and fair.”

According to a press release published by the ACLU of Michigan, the court’s order requires Michigan to put in place, by December 31, 2013, a parole process that:

  • Creates administrative structure for processing and determining parole eligibility;
  • Gives notice to all who have served 10 years of a life sentence that they are eligible for parole;
  • Includes a public ...