Oklahoma Prisoner's Eighth Amendment Diet Claims Frivolous by The U.S. Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals held that an Oklahoma Department of Corrections (OKDOC) prisoner's claims regarding his diet were frivolous. Terry D. Thompson, an OKDOC prisoner serving a 2,000 year sentence at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary (OSP), sued OSP officials …
Dismissal for Local Rule Violation Reversed in OK Jail Beating by The Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals held the dismissal of a complaint for violation of a local rule of procedure is too harsh, that Oklahoma's two- year statue of limitations applies to §1983 suits, and that the prisoner stated …
No Notice of Reconsideration is Abuse of Discretion by The Oklahoma Supreme Court held that a trial court abused its discretion in failing to notify a prisoner that it had reconsidered its earlier order allowing him to attend a hearing. Oklahoma prisoner Steve Kordis brought suit against several family members …
OK Prisoner Has Right To File Civil Complaint To Enforce Property Rights by The Court of Civil Appeals of Oklahoma, Division 3, held that the Ottowa County, District Court, erred when it dismissed a prisoner's complaint citing a statute that suspends a prisoners civil rights. A prisoner serving a life …
FBI Not Liable for Wrongful Incarceration of Federal Prisoner for Eight Years by The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit dismissed former federal prisoner Frank Boldoc's civil rights complaint for eight years of wrongful incarceration. Boldoc and another former federal prisoner, Francis Larkin, filed this claim under …
Police Not Liable for Killing Bystander During Chase by A municipality cannot be held liable for a constitutional violation under § 1983 unless there is a violation by individual officers. The court repudiates its prior decision to the contrary, Williams v. City and County of Denver, 140 F.3d 855 (10th …
Oklahoma DOC Grievance System Passes Muster by At 1032: "We review de novo the district court's finding of failure to exhaust administrative remedies." Id.: An inmate who begins the grievance process but does not complete it is barred from pursuing a § 1983 claim under PLRA for failure to exhaust …
Tenth Circuit Affirms Suicide Verdict in Trentadue Case by The decedent, arrested for a traffic violation and found to have an outstanding warrant for federal parole violations, was sent to a federal prison for a parole violation hearing, asked for protective custody two days later, and was found in his …
Oklahoma Escape Conviction Reversed for Jail Trusty by The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals has reversed a conviction for a misdemeanant's escape from the Grady County Jail because the language of the escape statute didn't encompass such an escape. On August 20, 2003, Gary Barnard was serving time in the …
Transfer of Hawaii Prisoners to CCA Prison in Oklahoma Upheld by The petitioners convicted in Hawai'i, were transferred to a private prison in Oklahoma, which was then bought by Oklahoma for operation as a state-owned prison. Their due process claim is foreclosed by Olim v. Wakinekona; notwithstanding various factual distinctions …
No Qualified Immunity in Prison Murder by The Tenth circuit affirmed an Oklahoma district court order denying summary judgment on qualified immunity grounds, and a stay of discovery, to Oklahoma prison officials. The appeals court held that the prisoner's stabbing and strangulation death by other prisoners created a genuine issue …
Vegetarian Diet Required for Seventh Day Adventist by The court of appeals for the Tenth circuit held that a district court erred in dismissing an Oklahoma prisoner's lawsuit seeking a vegetarian diet to accommodate his Seventh Day Adventist beliefs. Prison official's claims vegetarian diets are not nutritionally adequate. Prisoner presented …
Attorney Fees Awarded in OK Jail Suit by The court of appeals for the Tenth circuit affirmed an attorney fee award of $144,930.43 to prisoners who successfully sued over conditions in the Tulsa, Oklahoma jail. Court held prisoners' counsel was entitled to a fee enhancement. See: Clayton v. Thurman, 775 …
Rectal Search Requires Reasonable Suspicion by The court of appeals for the Tenth circuit vacated the criminal conviction of a federal prisoner in Oklahoma, holding the prison warden lacked "reasonable suspicion" to order a rectal search of the prisoner. The warden also failed to follow BOP regulations outlining the procedure …
Prisoners Have Right to Pay for Photocopies by The court of appeals for the Tenth circuit held that a district court erred in dismissing an Oklahoma prisoner's lawsuit that prison officials refused to photocopy legal documents for filing in a lawsuit. The prisoner had the money to pay for the …
Suspicionless Car Searches of Prison Visitors Upheld by The court of appeals for the Tenth circuit upheld a roadblock by Oklahoma state police and prison officials that led to the suspicionless car searches and dog sniffs of all prison visitors seeking access to prison. Court upheld the strip search of …
Mandatory AIDS Testing Upheld by The court of appeals for the Tenth circuit upheld an Oklahoma prison policy of subjecting prisoners to mandatory AIDS testing and punishing prisoners who refuse to submit to the tests. See: Dunn v. White, 880 F.2d 1188 (10th Cir. 1989).
Driver's License Examiner Denied Qualified Immunity in Prisoner's Sexual Assault by The United States District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma denied a former driver's license examiner summary judgment on grounds of qualified immunity in a case in which the examiner is charged with sexually assaulting a female work …
Dismissal of Jail Overcrowding Suit Affirmed on Appeal by Affirming the U.S. District Court of Oklahoma's decision, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals held that a prisoner's complaint that jail overcrowding caused his injuries was properly dismissed. Lavoy L. Stevenson was a prisoner at the Oklahoma County Detention Center (OCDC). …
Additional Drug Tests Not Required to Satisfy Due Process by The U.S. Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals, affirming the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma, held that due process does not require that prison officials perform additional drug testing when a prisoner tests positive for illegal drugs …
