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Articles by Matthew Clarke

Eighth Circuit Upholds Immigration Detention of American Citizen

On February 21, 2017, the Eight Circuit court of appeals affirmed the dismissal of a civil rights lawsuit brought by an American citizen who was held over a weekend in a Nebraska jail on an immigration detainer.

Ramon Mendoza was taken to the Sarpy County, Nebraska, jail after he was ...

MA Supreme Court: Registration Not Mandatory for Juvenile Sex Offenders

On February 17, 2017, the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts held that sex offender registration and GPS monitoring were not mandatory for a juvenile who had been convicted of a sex offense and adjudicated both as a delinquent juvenile and a youthful offender.

Samuel S. was 17 years-old when he ...

$15,000 to Wisconsin Jail Prisoner for Medical Neglect

by Matt Clarke

A former Wisconsin jail prisoner settled his medical neglect lawsuit for $15,000.

After Brian Shebelske had been incarcerated at the Marathon County Jail for twenty months, he had to be transported to the hospital emergency room and receive multiple blood transfusions. He had developed severe pernicious anemia ...

$420 to Assaulted Former Oklahoma Jail Prisoner for Injuries

Mr. Dowler was 31-years old when he in custody for DUI in the city of Bixby in Tulsa County, Oklahoma. While he was in custody, he was assaulted and suffered cuts on his head and two fractured teeth. Aided by Tulsa attorney Larry Oliver, he filed a lawsuit against the ...

$1,500,000 Verdict for Medical Neglect of Arizona Prisoner

by Matt  Clarke

In April 1999, an Arizona court awarded $1,500,000 to a man who suffered an intestinal injury while a prisoner and denied timely medical treatment.

Mr. Griffin was 40-years old and an artist when he was incarcerated in 1994. During his incarceration, he suffered perforation of a duodenal ...

$9,000 to Florida Jail Inmate for Burned Foot

In September 1995, a Florida jail prisoner who had suffered third-degree burns on his foot after a steam kettle in the jail's kitchen spilled boiling water on to him settled the suit he had brought for $9,000. Mr. Lay was a prisoner in the Volusia County jail working in a ...

$75,000 Awarded in NY for Police Excessive Force During Pat Down

In May 1997, hotel operator Mr, Shangraw was 47 and a prisoner when a police officer struck him in the groin during a pat-down search. He was denied medical treatment and suffered impotence. With the assistance of Potsdam, New York, attorney Jerry Leek, he filed suit in state court in ...

$19,719 to People in Prison for ADA Violations

Plaintiffs Hickman, Barber, Newman and Lane were wheelchair-bound prisoners at the Western Missouri Correctional Center where they were denied proper medical treatment and accommodations for their disabilities. In July 1994, they filed suit in federal court against the prison and Department of Corrections pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act. ...

$20,500 Award in Suit Over New York Prisoner Falling From Roof

In November 1996, the New York Court of Claims awarded a prisoner who had fallen from the roof of a prison while on a work detail and injured his knee $20,000. It awarded his wife $500 for loss of consortium.

Plaintiff Tucker was a prisoner on a work detail in ...

$1 Award in Montana Prisoner's Suit Over Deprivation of Exercise at Jail

A Montana state court awarded former jail prisoner Campbell $1 in damages after he sued the Sheriff of Flathead County, Montana, for depriving him of exercise while he was jailed. Campbell claimed emotion distress. The court found in his favor, but awarded only nominal damages.

See: Campbell v. Flathead Co. ...