Prisoner Made Goods Must be Labeled for Interstate Transport by The United States Supreme Court held that transportation of prisoner made goods without proper labeling violated the Ashurst Sumners Act (ASA), 49 U.S.C.A. §§ 61-64, and the U.S. Constitution Act 1, § 8. The Kentucky Whip and Collar Co. (petitioner) …
Delay in Kidney Dialysis Not Serious Medical Need by The plaintiff suffered from complete kidney failure and was supposed to receive dialysis three times a week, but told jail intake personnel that missing appointments was "no big deal" and he had "missed them before." He missed one appointment because he …
Strip Search of Juvenile Prisoner Upheld by The plaintiff, a 16-year-old girl, was sent to a state-approved private facility for juvenile offenders, where she admittedly used more drugs; she and others were observed "acting strangely" and staff told a passing police officer, who stopped in "to assess the situation." They …
Kentucky Jail Guards Liable for Beating Prisoner to Death by The plaintiff's argument that there is a municipal custom of failing to follow the jail's use of force policy is not supported by evidence of a single incident which violated the policy or by evidence that there were 30 or …
Supreme Court Defines Disabled Under ADA by Supreme Court Defines Disabled Under ADA The plaintiff worked in an auto plant and wound up with bilateral carpal tunnel syndrome and tendinitis, and later myotendinitis and thoracic outlet compression, resulting in restrictions on her ability to work (starting with no substantial lifting …
No Municipal Liability for Police Neck Breaking by A police officer broke the plaintiff's neck. The absence of specific directions about neck holds in the county's policy manual did not establish a policy of deliberate indifference. A single manual can't cover every possible police maneuver. The manual tells officers to …
Work Release Lacks Standing to Challenge BOP Policy by The operator of a community corrections center challenged the Department of Justice's policy change barring persons sentenced to prison from being placed in a community corrections center except near the end of their sentences. The operator lacked prudential standing to raise …
Kentucky County Settles Prisoner Rape Suit for $1.4 Million by Grant County, Kentucky, has settled with a prisoner who was brutally raped in the county's jail for $1.4 million. The September 1, 2005, settlement was the largest to date in a series of similar lawsuits against the county. The victim, …
Kentucky Jail Officials Held in Contempt for Overcrowding by Kentucky Jail Officials Held in Contempt For Overcrowding A federal district court in Kentucky ordered Jefferson County, Kentucky, jail officials held in contempt for violating a consent decree that prohibited overcrowding in the county jail. The court held that while the …
Ban on Gay Publications Upheld by The court of appeals for the Sixth circuit upheld a Kentucky prison policy that banned gay publications. This ruling conflicts with decisions by other circuits that have struck down bans on gay publications. See: Espinoza v. Wilson, 814 F.2d 1093 (6th Cir. 1987).
Political Beliefs Merit Control Unit Placement by The court of appeals for the District of Columbia reversed and remanded a lower court's injunction against the Bureau of Prisons that had prohibited the placement of political prisoners in a special control unit for women prisoners based solely on their political beliefs …
Right to Prison Abortions Unclear by The court of appeals for the Sixth circuit held that BOP officials J in Kentucky were properly granted qualified immunity for denying a prisoner an abortion after she requested one. Note that since this ruling other courts have held prisoners and pretrial detainees have …
Confidential Informant Testimony Must Be Reliable by Confidential Informant Testimony Must be Reliable The court of appeals for the Sixth circuit held that in prison disciplinary hearings, the hearing officer must provide written findings for the decision and a written summary of the evidence relied upon. When confidential informant testimony …
Women Prisoners Not Entitled to Work Release by The court of appeals for the Sixth circuit held that it does not violate the equal protection clause to ban women prisoners in Kentucky from work release facilities when male prisoners are allowed to use it. In doing so, the appeals court …
Sixth Circuit Orders New Trial in Prisoner's Medical Care Complaint by The U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has remanded for a new trial the judgment of a Kentucky district court granting a directed verdict in favor of county officials in a prisoner's denial-of-medical-care claims. Barry Lynn Walker suffers from …
Dismissed Suits by Prisoners Liable for Filing Fees Under §1915(g) by Dismissed Suits by Prisoners Liable for Filing Fees Under §1915(g) The U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals held that a state prisoner filing a civil rights complaint that is subsequently dismissed under the "three-strikes provision" of 28 U.S.C. § …
Sixth Circuit Orders Evidentiary Hearing in § 2255 Action; BOP Guard Gets 262 Months for Prisoner Rapes by Sixth Circuit Orders Evidentiary Hearing in § 2255 Action; BOP Guard Gets 262 Months for Prisoner Rapes The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals vacated a lower court's denial of a federal prisoner's …
Gender Discrimination Permissible in Guard Shift Assignment by The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals held a Title VII claim under the Civil Rights Act of 1964 is not stated where a Sheriff transferred a female guard from the first shift to third shift to comply with state law. The guard …
Presumed Damage Award Upheld in First Amendment Case by The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals held that a general damage award is appropriate in a First Amendment case and such an award allows an attorney fee award. This case was brought by a Winchester, Kentucky fireman, who was suspended from …
Former Prisoner's Cancer Death "Deeply Regrettable" But Not Constitutional Claim by Former Prisoner's Cancer Death "Deeply Regrettable" But Not Constitutional Claim The U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit, affirmed the grant of summary judgment to Kentucky jail and prison defendants in a case alleging that defendants' deliberate indifference left …
