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$3.5 Million Settlement to Former New York Prisoner Convicted Due to Perjured Testimony

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Prosecutor/Attorney General Misconduct, Disciplinary Hearings, Malicious Prosecution, Settlements, Wrongful Conviction

$3.5 Million Settlement to Former New York Prisoner Convicted Due to Perjured Testimony by The City of New York has paid $3.5 million to settle a lawsuit brought by an innocent man who spent 12 years in prison after being wrongfully convicted of attempted murder. The conviction was obtained by …

Washington DOC Agrees to Pay $38,000 in Too-Much-Medicine Suit

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Medical, Medication, Seizures, Malpractice, Drug Overdose, Settlements

Washington DOC Agrees to Pay $38,000 in Too-Much-Medicine Suit by On November 19, 2008, the Washington Department of Corrections (DOC) agreed to pay $38,000 to a woman who was improperly administered her seizure medication. The settlement resulted after Cindi J. Heihn, a prisoner at the Washington Corrections Center for Women …

Kentucky Law Retroactively Applied to Award Street Credit

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Civil Procedure, Injunctions, Retroactivity, Good Time, Parole

Kentucky Law Retroactively Applied to Award Street Credit by The Kentucky Supreme Court has held that a law that applies “street credit” to released prisoners effectively suspends existing statutory law that specifies time spent on parole does not count towards a prisoner’s maximum sentence. The Court accepted transfer of appeals …

California Prisoner Wins Option of Kosher Meals Until Halal Meals Can be Provided

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Sentencing, Habeas Corpus, Religious Diet

California Prisoner Wins Option of Kosher Meals Until Halal Meals Can be Provided by The Marin County Superior Court ordered San Quentin prison officials to provide Keith Allen Lewis, a Muslim prisoner, with access to Jewish kosher meals until he could be provided with the Halal meals prescribed by his …

News in Brief:

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: News, News in Brief

News in Brief: by California: Beverly Hills attorney Michael H. Inman was charged on June 17, 2010 with attempting to smuggle heroin into a secure area of the downtown L.A. criminal court building. The 48-year-old lawyer was caught with approximately 14.25 grams of black tar heroin in a plastic bag …

Obama’s 2011 Budget Calls for More Prisons, More Guards

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Crime/Demographics, Crime, Statistics/Trends

Obama’s 2011 Budget Calls for More Prisons, More Guards by Brandon Sample So much for “hope” and “change.” President Obama’s fiscal year (FY) 2011 budget for the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is simply more of the same – more prisons, more guards, more cops. At least when it comes …

Aryan Warriors Prison Gang Prosecuted in Nevada

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Guard Misconduct, Gang Policies, Informants, Witnesses, Federal Statutory Law, RICO

Aryan Warriors Prison Gang Prosecuted in Nevada by Gary Hunter Nevada prison officials recently had to come to grips with two stark realities. First, for decades their correctional facilities have been a haven for gang-related crime and brutality, and second, the state’s own corrupt prison guards played a role in …

$500,000 Settlement in Maryland Prisoner’s Death from Pepper Spraying

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Failure to Treat, Excessive Force, Pepper Spray/Tear Gas, Restraints, Settlements, Qualified Immunity

$500,000 Settlement in Maryland Prisoner’s Death from Pepper Spraying by David Reutter by David M. Reutter A half-million dollar settlement was paid to the family of a Maryland prisoner who died when prison officials used excessive pepper spray while extracting him from his cell, and then failed to provide medical …

Prisoner’s Homicide at Maryland Jail Not Prosecuted

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Misconduct/Corruption, Guard Misconduct, Jail Misconduct, Prison/Jail Murders, Excessive Force

Prisoner’s Homicide at Maryland Jail Not Prosecuted by Gary Hunter Ronnie White’s death by strangulation will go unpunished. On June 2, 2009, almost a year after White died amid a flurry of controversy at the Prince George’s County Correctional Center in Maryland, state’s attorney Glenn F. Ivey announced there was …

DOJ Investigation into New York Jail Finds Unconstitutional Conditions

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Guard Misconduct, Systemic Medical Neglect, Totality of Conditions, Failure to Protect (General), Excessive Force, Guard Brutality/Beatings, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness)

DOJ Investigation into New York Jail Finds Unconstitutional Conditions by Justin Miller The findings of an investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) into conditions at a New York jail describe violations of prisoners’ constitutional rights – violations which, in the words of federal investigators, have resulted in “serious …

California Official Resigns from State Post, Hired by Federal Receiver

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Misconduct/Corruption, Government Misconduct, Staffing

California Official Resigns from State Post, Hired by Federal Receiver by Kathleen Webb, the California official who, as deputy director of the state’s Department of General Services, oversaw the questionable purchase of $1.2 million worth of vehicles that remained unused for months, and who resigned in October 2009, just two …

Washington DOC Pays $3,275,000 to Family of Deputy Killed by Former Prisoner

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Work Release, Escapes, Settlements, Wrongful Release, Wrongful Death, Murder by Parolees, Murder by Escapees

Washington DOC Pays $3,275,000 to Family of Deputy Killed by Former Prisoner by In September 2009, the Washington Department of Corrections (DOC) agreed to settle a wrongful death suit filed by the family of a King County deputy who was murdered by a recently-released prisoner. On December 2, 2006, while …

U.S. State Prison Population Declines for First Time in a Decade

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Statistics/Trends, Sentencing

U.S. State Prison Population Declines for First Time in a Decade by Justin Miller Recent advance data from the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) indicates that not only has the rate of people entering the U.S. prison system declined in the past year, but the state prison population actually dropped …

New Jersey’s Riverfront Prison Demolished

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: News

New Jersey’s Riverfront Prison Demolished by Justin Miller The Riverfront State Prison in Camden, New Jersey is no more. Despite protests from prison employees and the union that represents them, which objected to the loss of jobs, the prison – which had drawn considerable criticism over the years as a …

“Back to School” is a Guide to Success Following Release from Prison

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Commentary/Reviews, Reviews, Education

“Back to School” is a Guide to Success Following Release from Prison by Gary Hunter Even the most diligent planning does not ensure success. However, it is a proven fact that education significantly enhances one’s chances to succeed. Back to School: A Guide to Continuing Your Education After Prison (the …

ICE Policies and U.S. Deportation Laws Violate Human Rights

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Crime/Demographics, Statistics/Trends, Immigration

ICE Policies and U.S. Deportation Laws Violate Human Rights by Gary Hunter A 64-page report issued last year by Human Rights Watch (HRW), a non-profit watchdog organization, indicates that changes in U.S. deportation laws implemented by Congress in 1996 are mostly targeting immigrants who commit nonviolent crimes. Statistical data accumulated …

U.S. Department of Justice Releases 2008 Capital Punishment Statistics

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Crime/Demographics, Statistics/Trends, Death Penalty

U.S. Department of Justice Releases 2008 Capital Punishment Statistics by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke In December 2009, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) of the U.S. Department of Justice released statistical data on capital punishment in the United States for 2008. The report was later revised to include preliminary …

Problems Persist at Privately-Operated Rhode Island Jail

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Staff-Prisoner Assault, Private Prisons, Guard Misconduct, Jail Misconduct, Medical Neglect/Malpractice

Problems Persist at Privately-Operated Rhode Island Jail by Justin Miller On June 30, 2009, a former employee at the Donald W. Wyatt Detention Facility, a privately-operated jail near Providence, Rhode Island, pleaded guilty to lying to federal officials about sexual misconduct involving an immigration detainee, marking yet another embarrassing problem …

Maricopa County Throws Sheriff Arpaio Under Improperly Purchased Bus

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Government Misconduct, Conditions of Confinement, Transportation

Maricopa County Throws Sheriff Arpaio Under Improperly Purchased Bus by by Matt Clarke On October 30, 2009, the Maricopa County Internal Audit Department released a report critical of Sheriff Joe Arpaio’s purchase of a $456,221.57 bus specially equipped to transport prisoners. Among other criticisms, the report noted that the Maricopa …

North Carolina Innocence Commission Verifies Wrongful Conviction

Article • August 15, 2010 • from PLN August, 2010

Filed under: Sentencing, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment

North Carolina Innocence Commission Verifies Wrongful Conviction by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke After examining hundreds of cases, the North Carolina Innocence Inquiry Commission has verified its first claim of innocence – which resulted in both controversy and stinging criticism from prosecutors. In 2006, North Carolina became the first state …