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Articles by Lonnie Burton

Lawful Sudanese Immigrant Receives $60,000 Settlement for Five Days Unlawful ICE Detention

by Lonnie Burton

On November 2, 2004, U.S. District Judge Charles K. Wolff of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa, signed an order approving the settlement in, and dismissing, a case of an Iowa man who was unlawfully held on an immigration detainer for five days. ...

Naturalized U.S. Citizen Receives $400,000 after Being Illegally Held by ICE for 71 Months

by Lonnie Burton

Rennison Vern Castillo served honorably in the United States Army. He received the National Defense Service Medal and an Army Service Ribbon. While serving the country, Castillo was sworn in as a naturalized U.S. citizen in 1998. Castillo was honorably discharged from the Army in 2003. And ...

Dismissal of Ill. Prisoner's Dental Care Lawsuit Affirmed By Seventh Circuit

by Lonnie Burton

On February 15, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit decided that a lower court's dismissal of Illinois state prisoner's lawsuit against a private medical contractor and a prison dentist should be upheld. The appellate court agreed that the prisoner's deliberate indifference claims for ...

Washington Court of Appeals Holds No Duty of Protection Owed By DOC to Felon Under Community Supervision

by Lonnie Burton

On February 14, 2017, Division Three of the Washington State Court of Appeals held in a 2-1 ruling that the Department of Corrections (DOC) was not liable for an assault suffered by a man while he was serving his term of community supervision following his release from ...

$1.3 Million+ Award of Attorney's Fees and Costs Approved in New York Unlawful Confinement Case that Netted Only $1 in Damages

by Lonnie Burton

On June 17, 2016, Judge Jed A. Raskoff, sitting in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, issued an order approving over $1.3 million in costs and attorney's fees in a long-running case that resulted in New York's original sexually violent predator civil ...

Arizona's No-Bail Constitutional Provision for Certain Sex Crimes Violates Federal Constitution, State Supreme Court Says

by Lonnie Burton

On February 9, 2017, the Arizona Supreme Court struck down a state constitutional provision which barred bail in certain sex offense cases where the alleged victim was under 15 years of age. The state high court found that section of the Arizona Constitution violated the United States ...

Fifth Circuit Reinstates Part of Louisiana Prisoner's Failure-to-Protect, Medical Indifference Lawsuit

by Lonnie Burton

On February 9, 2017, the United States Circuit Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmedin part and reversed in part a district court's order granting summary judgment to prison officials in a case where a state prisoner claimed he was misclassified, assaulted, and then denied timely, ...

California Court Refuses to Reduce Juvenile's 32 Years-to-Life Under Miller v. Alabama

by Lonnie Burton

On January 24, 2017, a three-judge panel of the California Court of Appeal, Fourth Appellate District, Division Two, largely upheld the sentence of a man who was sentenced in 2011, at age 14, to 35 years (to life) for attempted murder and robbery. The court held that ...

First Circuit Denies Qualified Immunity to Police Officer for Arrest Without Probable Cause

by Lonnie Burton

On February 1, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit set aside a lower court ruling which granted summary judgment to a police officer who was sued for arresting a man without probable cause. The court, which included retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice David ...

Eighth Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Minnesota Prison Workplace Injury Lawsuit

by Lonnie Burton

On February 2, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit affirmed the ruling of a federal district court in Minneapolis which dismissed a lawsuit filed by a prisoner who lost three fingers in an on-the-job accident. The appellate court found that the lower court ...