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Prison Drinking Water and Wastewater Pollution Threaten Environmental Safety Nationwide

Article • November 15, 2007 • from PLN November, 2007

Filed under: Conditions of Confinement, Overcrowding, Environmental Law, Sewage, Water, Clean Water Act

Prison Drinking Water and Wastewater Pollution Threaten Environmental Safety Nationwide by John Dannenberg by John E. Dannenberg Aging infrastructure concerns are not limited to America's highways, bridges and dams. Today, crumbling, overcrowded prisons and jails nationwide are bursting at the seams -- literally -- leaking environmentally dangerous effluents not just …

$56,000 Settlement for Torturous Eight Hours in New Jersey Jail

Article • November 15, 2007 • from PLN November, 2007

Filed under: Strip Searches, Arrestee Searches, Food, Exposure to Cold, Sanitation, Excessive Force, Restraints, Damages

$56,000 Settlement for Torturous Eight Hours in New Jersey Jail by In April 2007, the Borough of Bradley Beach, New Jersey, agreed to pay $56,000 to settle a federal lawsuit alleging multiple constitutional violations by a woman who spent eight hours in the Borough?s jail. Plaintiff Aimee Sliker was arrested …

Jama et al v. Esmor Correctional Services, NJ, Jury Questionnair, immigration beating, 2007

Brief • November 13, 2007

Filed under: Attorney Fee Awards, Attorney Fees (PLRA), Guard Brutality/Beatings, Immigration

Jama et al v. Esmor Correctional Services, NJ, Jury Questionnair, immigration beating, 2007 Case 2:97-cv-03093-DRD-MAS Document 531 Filed 11/13/2007 Page 1 of 9 Case 2:97-cv-03093-DRD-MAS Document 531 Filed 11/13/2007 Page 2 of 9 Case 2:97-cv-03093-DRD-MAS Document 531 Filed 11/13/2007 Page 3 of 9 Case 2:97-cv-03093-DRD-MAS Document 531 Filed 11/13/2007 Page …

New Jersey Supreme Court Orders DOC to Codify Prisoner Healthcare Responsibilities

Article • October 15, 2007 • from PLN October, 2007

Filed under: CMS, Systemic Medical Neglect, Medical Records, Hepatitis, Civil Procedure, Disclosure of Records

New Jersey Supreme Court Orders DOC to Codify Prisoner Healthcare Responsibilities by John Dannenberg by John E. Dannenberg The Supreme Court of New Jersey, incensed with the inhumane treatment of a state prisoner who was systematically denied Hepatitis-C treatment for four years, ordered the New Jersey Department of Corrections (NJDOC) …

$4 Million Settlement In Rape and Beating Death of Mentally Ill New Jersey Prisoner

Article • October 15, 2007 • from PLN October, 2007

Filed under: Prisoner-Prisoner Assault, Private Prisons, Prison Health Services, Prison/Jail Murders, Failure to Protect (General), Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death), Failure to Treat (Mental Illness)

$4 Million Settlement In Rape and Beating Death of Mentally Ill New Jersey Prisoner by Michael Rigby by Michael Rigby The daughters of a mentally ill man who was raped and beaten to death by another prisoner in New Jersey's Camden County Correctional Facility (CCCF) will receive a combined $4 …

Gannet New Jersey’s Witch Hunt for Public Employees with Criminal Records

Article • September 15, 2007 • from PLN September, 2007

Filed under: Misconduct/Corruption, Guard Misconduct, Rehabilitation/Recidivism, Disclosure of Records

Gannet New Jersey’s Witch Hunt for Public Employees with Criminal Records by Matthew Clarke Gannet New Jersey's Witch Hunt for Public Employees with Criminal Records by Matthew T. Clarke The media in New Jersey, spearheaded by Gannett New Jersey publications, has embarked on a campaign to root out public employees …

Jama et al v. Esmor Correctional Services, NJ, Plf Response to Def MoL in Opposition of Plf Mot to Preclude DeLand Testimony, immigration beating, 2007

Brief • June 6, 2007

Filed under: Eighth Amendment, Guard Brutality/Beatings, Immigration

Jama et al v. Esmor Correctional Services, NJ, Plf Response to Def MoL in Opposition of Plf Mot to Preclude DeLand Testimony, immigration beating, 2007 Case 2:97-cv-03093-DRD-MAS Document 461 Filed 06/06/07 Page 1 of 18 PageID: 8817 Mary Beth Hogan, Esq. Justin Smith, Esq. Drew M. Dorman, Esq. Debevoise & …

Prison Disciplinary Conviction Creates Property Interest

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Disciplinary Hearings, Disciplinary Litigation, Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Restitution

Prison Disciplinary Conviction Creates Property Interest by The U.S. District Court for the State of New Jersey held that a state prisoner was entitled to due process in determining the amount of restitution owed in connection with a prison disciplinary conviction: Alexander Artway, a NJ state prisoner, was charged with …

Need for New Prosthesis is Serious Medical Need

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Correctional Health Services, Discrimination, Disabled Prisoners, Private Contractors

Need for New Prosthesis is Serious Medical Need by A New Jersey federal district court held that the failure to provide a pretrial detainee with a prosthesis is deliberate indifference to a serious medical need. This action was filed by a pretrial detainee against officials at New Jersey's Cape May …

First Amendment Allows Prohibition of Unsupervised Prison Group Prayer

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Religious Freedom, Denial of Religious Services

First Amendment Allows Prohibition of Unsupervised Prison Group Prayer by The Third Circuit Court of Appeals held a prison regulation that prohibits prisoners from engaging in group religious activity without supervision of prison officials does not violate the First and Fourteenth Amendment. This civil rights action was filed by prisoners …

No Heightened Pleading Standard for 1983 Actions

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Civil Procedure, Complaints, Involuntary Treatment/Drugging, Civil Commitment

No Heightened Pleading Standard for 1983 Actions by The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit has reinstated a pro se prisoner's action challenging his involuntary commitment to a psychiatric hospital under 42 U.S.C. 1983. A lower court had dismissed the case for failure to state an actionable cause. …

Officials Not Qualifiedly Immune In Paralyzed Prisoner's Suit

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Medical, Skeletal Injury, Failure to Protect (General), Overcrowding, Consent Decrees, Qualified Immunity

Officials Not Qualifiedly Immune In Paralyzed Prisoner's Suit by The U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey held that county and jail officials were not entitled to qualified immunity in a paralyzed prisoner's civil rights suit. Timothy Ryan was arrested for a traffic violation and held at the …

No Qualified Immunity For Prison Officials In Paralyzed Prisoner's Suit

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Medical, Skeletal Injury, Failure to Protect (General), Overcrowding, Consent Decrees, Qualified Immunity

No Qualified Immunity For Prison Officials In Paralyzed Prisoner's Suit by The U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey held that prison officials were not entitled to qualified immunity in a paralyzed prisoner's civil rights suit and that fact issues precluded summary judgment. Timothy Ryan was arrested for …

Injunctive Relief Granted For Pregnant NJ Jail Prisoners

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Gender Discrimination -- Women, Abortion, OB/GYN, Family, Mothers in Prison

Injunctive Relief Granted For Pregnant NJ Jail Prisoners by Prisoners in the Monmouth County Correctional Institution, a New Jersey county jail, filed a class action suit on behalf of pregnant female prisoners alleging that they were being denied "essential" health care. The prisoners alleged, in particular, that the women were …

Double Bunking Not Allowed In NJ Jail

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Conditions of Confinement, Overcrowding

Double Bunking Not Allowed In NJ Jail by Public advocate for prisoner's in Monmouth County Correctional Institution filed a motion seeking to modify a previous court order involving prisoner housing. In the original suit a district court found conditions at MCCI to be unconstitutional. The judge subsequently ordered various modifications …

District Judge Orders Measures to Ease Overcrowding

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Overcrowding, Civil Procedure, Special Masters

District Judge Orders Measures to Ease Overcrowding by Prisoners in the Monmouth County Correctional Institution, a New Jersey county jail, filed suit alleging unconstitutional living conditions due to overcrowding. A district judge assigned a special master to investigate. The special master found serious overcrowding which caused problems in classification of …

NJ Prisoner's § 1983 Action Against Parole Board and Its Agents Dismissed as Incognizable

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Sex Offender Registration, Parole, Parole Conditions, Immunity/Liability, Qualified Immunity, False Arrest

NJ Prisoner's § 1983 Action Against Parole Board and Its Agents Dismissed as Incognizable by NJ Prisoner's § 1983 Action Against Parole Board and Its Agents Dismissed as Incognizable In 1997, John Williams was a New Jersey state parolee. His parole officer arrested him for changing jobs without permission and …

Suit Can Be Settled Before Class is Certified

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Civil Procedure, Settlements, Class Certification

Suit Can Be Settled Before Class is Certified by Most federal courts have held that a suit filed as a class action should be treated as one for purposes of settlement or dismissal, even though the class has not been certified, until it is determined that class certification is not …

Expert Witness Can Change Opinion At Any Time

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Expert Witnesses, Federal Statutory Law, RICO

Expert Witness Can Change Opinion At Any Time by The court allows a supplementary report by plaintiffs' expert in a RICO case based on misrepresentations about the effects of tobacco "to accommodate the scientific process seeking truth" (486) even though it was submitted during the trial only a few days …

Total Exhaustion Required Under PLRA

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: PLRA, Administrative Exhaustion (PLRA)

Total Exhaustion Required Under PLRA by The plain language of the PLRA exhaustion requirement compels a "total exhaustion" rule--i.e., if one claim is unexhausted, all must be dismissed. General legislative intent and history supports that conclusion, as do policy considerations, since piecemeal litigation is more time-consuming than requiring all claims …