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Court Rejects Challenge to Newspaper Ban in SHU

Article • April 15, 2009

Filed under: Publications/Books, Mail Regulations, Media, Censorship

Court Rejects Challenge to Newspaper Ban in SHU by On May 9, 2008, U.S. District Judge William Griesbach rejected a challenge by a Wisconsin prisoner to a newspaper ban in the SHU. Jose Soto was placed in an administrative confinement (SHU) at the Portage, Wisconsin prison facility for rule infractions. …

$295,000 Award to Wisconsin Prisoner in Moldy Mattress Case Reduced by Court

Article • March 15, 2009 • from PLN March, 2009

Filed under: Organizing, Prison Rebellion, Bedding, Damages

$295,000 Award to Wisconsin Prisoner in Moldy Mattress Case Reduced by Court by On September 17, 2008, a Wisconsin federal jury awarded a prisoner $295,000 for violation of his constitutional rights. Specifically, the jury found that state prisoner Reggie Townsend was “denied the minimal civilized measure of life’s necessities.” After …

Oxford Federal Facility Sticks Company For Two Thirds Of Recycling Bill

Article • March 15, 2009

Filed under: Government Misconduct, Civil Procedure, Settlements

Oxford Federal Facility Sticks Company For Two Thirds Of Recycling Bill by Wisconsin state recycling company, Bickford, Inc., filed suit in 1997 against the Federal Correctional Institution (FCI) in Oxford for the non payment of a $1,800 invoice for the disposal of lighting ballasts. The suit settled for $660 in …

Townsend v. Allen, WI, Settlement, conditions mattress, 2009

Brief • February 25, 2009

Filed under: Bedding

Townsend v. Allen, WI, Settlement, conditions mattress, 2009 Case: 3:05-cv-00204-bbc Document # : 247 Filed: 02/25/2009 Page 1 of 2 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF WISCONSIN REGGIE TOWNSEND, Plaintiff, v. Case No. 05-C-204-C JERRY ALLEN , Defendant. STIPULATED ORDER OF DISMISSAL The undersigned hereby stipulate that …

Seventh Circuit Upholds False Disciplinary Charges; Due Process Violation in Transfer to Supermax Voluntarily Dismissed

Article • February 15, 2009

Filed under: Disciplinary Hearings, Disciplinary Litigation, Liberty Interests, Informants (Disciplinary Hearings), Notice of Charges, Notice of Hearing, False Charges (Disciplinary Hearings), Written Findings, Evidence, Ad-Seg Hearings

Seventh Circuit Upholds False Disciplinary Charges; Due Process Violation in Transfer to Supermax Voluntarily Dismissed by The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a district court’s order dismissing a prisoner’s claim that guards violated his due process rights by fabricating a disciplinary charge and then finding him guilty based upon …

$2,000 Settlement For Federal Prisoner's Lost Property And Legal Work

Article • February 15, 2009

Filed under: Guard Brutality/Beatings, Legal Materials, Damages, Settlements, Money/Property, Prisoner Property, Federal Tort Claims Act

$2,000 Settlement For Federal Prisoner's Lost Property And Legal Work by Wisconsin federal prisoner Joseph Davis brought a combined 42 U.S.C. § 1983 and federal tort action in 1997 after guards lost his property and legal documents, and assaulted him during a transfer to another prison. He claimed that he …

Wisconsin Claims Board Awards Almost $110,000 for Wrongful Rape Conviction, Attorney Fees

Article • February 15, 2009 • from PLN February, 2009

Filed under: Sentencing, Wrongful Conviction

Wisconsin Claims Board Awards Almost $110,000 for Wrongful Rape Conviction, Attorney Fees by Wisconsin Claims Board Awards Almost $110,000 for Wrongful Rape Conviction, Attorney Fees In 1990, Anthony Hicks was convicted of raping a woman who lived in his apartment building. He was sentenced to 19 years in prison. Central …

100 Year Probation And Sex Offender Registration Stay Reversed As Erroneous

Article • January 15, 2009

Filed under: Sex Offender Registration, Sentencing, Probation

100 Year Probation And Sex Offender Registration Stay Reversed As Erroneous by The State of Wisconsin appealed a court's reduction of the terms of sentencing imposed on Samuel Roloff after he pled to three felony and three misdemeanor charges of sexual activity with underage girls. His reduction to a 100 …

$635,000 Settlement in Wisconsin Woman Prisoner’s Suicide

Article • December 15, 2008 • from PLN December, 2008

Filed under: Mental Health, Suicides

$635,000 Settlement in Wisconsin Woman Prisoner’s Suicide by The family of a Wisconsin prisoner who committed suicide has agreed to accept a $635,000 payment from the state to settle a federal lawsuit. The suit claimed that Taycheedah Correctional Institution (TCI) prisoner Angela Enoch was able to strangle herself with torn …

NIC Report: Wisconsin Jails Racist and Dangerous

Article • December 15, 2008 • from PLN December, 2008

Filed under: Guard Misconduct, Jail Misconduct, Racial Discrimination, Systemic Medical Neglect, Conditions of Confinement, Fire Hazards, Staffing, Dogs, Administrative Exhaustion

NIC Report: Wisconsin Jails Racist and Dangerous by Gary Hunter On January 31, 2008, the National Institute of Corrections (NIC) issued a 139-page report detailing numerous flaws in the Milwaukee, Wisconsin jail system. The Milwaukee House of Correction (HOC), the Community Corrections Center (CCC) and the County Jail Facility (CJF) …

Banning of Newsletter in Wisconsin Prison Violates First Amendment

Article • November 15, 2008 • from PLN November, 2008

Filed under: Injunctions (PLRA), Mail, Publications/Books

Banning of Newsletter in Wisconsin Prison Violates First Amendment by John Dannenberg Banning of Newsletter in Wisconsin Prison Violates First Amendment by John E. Dannenberg A U.S. District Court has held that a decision by the Wisconsin Dept. of Corrections (WDOC) to ban a prisoner’s receipt of The New Abolitionist, …

Jail Prisoners Get Rapid HIV Tests

Article • October 15, 2008 • from PLN October, 2008

Filed under: Medical, HIV/AIDS, Medical Experiments/Exploitation

Jail Prisoners Get Rapid HIV Tests by A relatively new rapid HIV test has been used on over 31,000 jail prisoners in four different states. The testing was made possible by grants from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). The grants were part of a project to expand the use …

Monetary Sanctions Permitted for Milwaukee Jail’s Violation of Consent Decree

Article • October 15, 2008 • from PLN October, 2008

Filed under: Conditions of Confinement, Totality of Conditions, Food, Overcrowding, Clothing, Showers, Injunctions, Consent Decrees, Sanctions

Monetary Sanctions Permitted for Milwaukee Jail’s Violation of Consent Decree by David Reutter Monetary Sanctions Permitted for Milwaukee Jail’s Violation of Consent Decree by David Reutter Wisconsin’s First District Court of Appeals has held that an intentional contempt finding against the Milwaukee County Jail (MCJ) entitles prisoners who were injured …

New Jersey Joins Other States in Restricting Internet Use by Sex Offenders

Article • September 15, 2008 • from PLN September, 2008

Filed under: Sex Offenders (Discrimination), Parole/Probation Searches, Parole, Media, Internet, State Legislation

New Jersey Joins Other States in Restricting Internet Use by Sex Offenders by New Jersey Joins Other States in Restricting ?Internet Use by Sex Offenders On December 27, 2007, New Jersey enacted legislation to restrict convicted sex offenders’ Internet use. Acting Governor Richard J. Codey relied on public hysteria over …

BOP Exclusion of Prisoners from Drug Treatment Overbroad

Article • August 15, 2008

Filed under: Sentencing, Good Time, Drug Treatment/Rehab

BOP Exclusion of Prisoners from Drug Treatment Overbroad by The petitioner, who had pled guilty to conspiracy to violate the firearms control laws, alleged that he had completed a drug abuse treatment program and therefore qualified for early release under a federal statute applicable to prisoners convicted of nonviolent offenses. …

Non Payment of Filing Fees Can Justify Ban on New Litigation

Article • August 15, 2008

Filed under: PLRA, Filing Fees (PLRA), Frivolous Litigation (PLRA)

Non Payment of Filing Fees Can Justify Ban on New Litigation by A "serial litigator" who hasn't paid his past filing fees because he spends his money as fast as he gets it could be prohibited from bringing additional actions until he pays all the back fees. The court does …

Wisconsin Pretrial Detainee's Free Speech Complaint Proceeds Over Denial of Books

Article • August 15, 2008

Filed under: Prison Labor, Federal Statutory Law, Fair Labor Standards Act, Publications/Books, Civil Commitment

Wisconsin Pretrial Detainee's Free Speech Complaint Proceeds Over Denial of Books by Alfred Riley, a Wisconsin state detainee patient at the Sand Ridge Secure Treatment Center (SRSTC), a sex offender civil commitment facility, filed a lawsuit against the State, SRSTC and various other entities alleging federal and state law violations. …

Fifth Circuit: Suit Cannot be Dismissed for Following Form’s Instructions; Allegations of Retroactive Negative Changes in Texas Parole Law States Claim

Article • August 15, 2008

Filed under: Discrimination, Gang Policies, Racial Discrimination, Mail Regulations

Fifth Circuit: Suit Cannot be Dismissed for Following Form’s Instructions; Allegations of Retroactive Negative Changes in Texas Parole Law States Claim by Matthew Clarke by Matthew T. Clarke On December 12, 2006, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals held that a prisoner’s lawsuit could not be dismissed for failing to …

Challenge to Out of State Transfer Can Be Filed As Habeas

Article • August 15, 2008

Filed under: Out of State Transfers, Disabled Prisoners, Disciplinary Litigation, Sentencing, Habeas Corpus

Challenge to Out of State Transfer Can Be Filed As Habeas by The plaintiff sought an order barring his transfer to an out of state private prison. The court dismissed his petition as an improper habeas action, but now grants reconsideration, since it realizes that this is not a second …

Wisconsin Prison Publication Ban Policy Disregards First Amendment Right To Newspaper Access

Article • August 15, 2008

Filed under: Mootness, Qualified Immunity, Publications/Books, Mental Health, Civil Commitment

Wisconsin Prison Publication Ban Policy Disregards First Amendment Right To Newspaper Access by Wisconsin State prisoner William West brought 42 U.S.C. $ 1983 action against the Wisconsin Secure Program Facility (WSPF) and various guards after they refused him access to prepaid newspapers and discarded some issues in the trash. The …