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Articles by Mark Wilson

Seventh Circuit: No Right to Jury Trial in Exhaustion Dispute

By Mark Wilson

The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals held that a prisoner is not entitled to a jury trial to resolve factual disputes about his exhaustion of administrative remedies.

Indiana prisoner Christopher Pavey sued several guards in federal court, alleging that they subjected him to excessive force when they ...

No Refund or Waiver of Appellate Filing Fee

By Mark Wilson

In three consolidated cases, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals held that voluntary dismissal of appeals does not result in refunds of the Appellants’ $455 filing fees. The court also held that it has no authority to relieve prisoners from paying outstanding portions of fees under 28 ...

Second Circuit Explains §1915 Strikes and Imminent Danger

Second Circuit Explains §1915 Strikes and Imminent Danger

By Mark Wilson

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals held that a lower court abused its discretion in denying a pro se prisoner leave to amend his complaint to allege an imminent danger of serious physical injury.

On August 10, 2006, New ...

Fourth Circuit Reverses §1915A Dismissal of Failure to Protect Suit

Fourth Circuit Reverses §1915A Dismissal of Failure to Protect Suit

By Mark Wilson

The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals held that a lower court erred in dismissing a North Carolina prisoner’s failure to protect suit for failing to state a claim.

North Carolina prison officials knew that prisoner Samuel Brown ...

Seventh Circuit Says No Religious Diet Violated RLUIPA

By Mark Wilson

The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals held that Illinois prison officials violated the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act (RLUIPA) when they denied a prisoner a non-meat diet.

Illinois prisoner Gregory Koger changed his religious affiliation from Baptist to Buddhist in 1999. He stopped eating meat ...

Washington Supreme Court Says Commutations Implicate Due Process

By Mark Wilson

The Washington state Supreme Court held that due process protections attach to conditional commutation decisions and the liberty interest at stake “is indistinguishable from the interest in parole and probation.”

In 1997, Jayson Bush was convicted of assault and sentenced to 279 months in prison. On May ...

Interpreters Allowed in Nevada Small Claims Cases

By Mark Wilson

The Nevada Supreme Court held “that under both its inherent and express powers, a justice court is authorized to” appoint interpreters in small claims cases.

In 2004, Hermes Caballero was transported from an Arizona prison to Ely State Prison in Nevada. He was told his personal property ...

Washington Trial Courts May Sanction Community Custody Violations

By Mark Wilson

The Washington State Court Appeals held that the legislature did not remove the trial courts’ jurisdiction to punish community custody violations when it granted the Department of Corrections (DOC) to also punish those violations.

Karen Gamble was sentenced to 61 days in jail and 24 months of ...

New York Parolee Detained Without Hearing; City Not Entitled to Summary Judgment

The Second Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a district court’s dismissal of a parolee’s wrongful imprisonment claims, holding that the defendant, New York City, was not entitled to summary judgment.

On December 13, 2001, Keith McDay was arrested in New York on criminal charges and a parole violation warrant. The ...

Tenth Circuit Vacates Class Certification in Jail Conditions Suit; Case Settles Following Remand

On February 4, 2009, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals granted a Colorado sheriff’s interlocutory appeal challenging a class certification order and remanded the case for further proceedings, where it eventually settled in April 2011.

Four jail prisoners sued Garfield County officials alleging, among other things, that the use of ...