BOP Cancels Solicitation of Proposal for Single-Faith Program by On October 26, 2006, the federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) announced that it was canceling its solicitation of proposals for single-faith, faith-based residential re-entry programs. The move came after a lawsuit was filed by the Madison, Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation …
Suicides Plague Wisconsin Jails; Attempted Suicide Suit Settles for $13.1 Million by Matthew Clarke by Matthew T. Clarke There has been a rash of suicides in Wisconsin jails, including six in 2005 and four in the first half of 2006. One jail, in LaCrosse County, experienced prisoner suicides in 1997, …
Dismissal of Retaliation Claim Reversed by The Seventh U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the dismissal by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin of a prisoner's retaliation claim. Tony Walker, a Wisconsin prisoner, sued prison officials under 42 U.S.C. §1983 claiming that officials conspired to retaliate …
Prisoners Have No Right to Boot Camp by The U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals held that Wisconsin prisoners excluded from a state "boot camp" program because of their convictions of violent offenses failed to state a claim and their suit was properly dismissed by the district court. Dennis E. …
Seclusion Order for Civil Detainees Cannot be for Punishment Unless Alternatives Fail by Seclusion Order for Civil Detainees Cannot be for Punishment Unless Alternatives Fail A Wisconsin Federal District Court held that a civilly committed sex offenders' security related seclusion placements did not violate the offenders' substantive due process rights, …
Dismissal Reversed Where Record Unclear on Administrative Remedy Exhaustion by The U.S. Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals vacated the dismissal of a prisoner's civil rights suit by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin where the record was unclear regarding exhaustion of administrative remedies. John M. Howe, …
Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies is Precondition to Prisoner Suit in Federal Court Before Release by Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies is Precondition to Prisoner Suit in Federal Court Before Release The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals held a Wisconsin ex-prisoner, who filed his suit while incarcerated, must exhaust all administrative remedies …
Factual Issues as to Legitimacy of Prisoner Regulation Precludes Dismissal by The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit reversed and remanded a district court's dismissal of a Wisconsin state prisoner's claim challenging prison dietary policy. Plaintiff prisoner, a Muslim, brought a §1983 action challenging the prison's policy of …
Wisconsin Prisoner's Failure to Exhaust Remedies Required Dismissal by The U.S. Western District Court of Wisconsin dismissed a civil rights lawsuit filed by a state prisoner who failed to exhaust administrative remedies. Dennis Gonzalez, a Wisconsin state prisoner incarcerated at the Supermax prison in Boscobel, wanted to practice his Native …
Guard's Medical and Drug History Discloseable in Discovery by A Wisconsin federal district court held that a prisoner was entitled to receive in discovery a guard's medical and urine test report. This action was filed by a prisoner at Wisconsin's Green Bay Correctional Institution, alleging guards beat him. The magistrate …
Immunity Granted to Sex Offenders in Treatment by The Wisconsin Supreme Court has held that Gary Tate was entitled to immunity for statements made during court-imposed sex offender treatment, and the revocation of his probation for refusing to make admissions to his crime without immunity was improper. Tate, 47, was …
Warrantless Search by Probation Officer Constitutional by The U.S. Supreme Court held that a warrantless search of a probationer's house by probation officers did not violate the Fourth Amendment. Petitioner, a Wisconsin probationer, was charged with felony possession of a firearm by a felon after probation officers, acting on a …
Muslim Prisoner Entitled to Prayer Oil; RLUIPA Held Constitutional by A federal district court in Wisconsin has held that a Muslim prisoner is entitled to possess prayer oil in his cell, and held the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000 (RLUIPA) is constitutional. Prisoner Jerry Charles filed …
WI Prisoners may be Charged for Transport to Court Proceedings by The Wisconsin supreme court held that a prisoner who violated his parole and was serving time on his original sentence may be charged for costs to transport him from prison to court for new charges that caused the violation, …
Unconstitutional to Hold Wisconsin Prisoner Beyond Mandatory Release Date by by Matthew T. Clarke Wisconsin court of appeals held that Wisconsin Department of Corrections (DOC) officials who held a prisoner beyond his mandatory release date (MRD) violated the prisoner's Eighth Amendment rights. James Allen, a former Wisconsin state prisoner, became …
Sua Sponte Dismissal of Disciplinary Challenge Reversed; Wisconsin Prisoner Denied Right to Be Heard by Sua Sponte Dismissal of Disciplinary Challenge Reversed; Wisconsin Prisoner Denied Right to Be Heard The Wisconsin Court Of Appeals held that a state trial court error in refusing to issue a writ of certiorari and …
Wisconsin Prisoner's ADA Claim Proceeds; Counsel Appointed by A Wisconsin federal district court has allowed a prisoner at the Stanley Correctional Institution (SCI) to proceed on his claims under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C. §§ 12101-12213 (ADA). The Court also appointed the prisoner counsel. Wisconsin prisoner …
Qualified Immunity Upheld on Supermax Mental Illness Aggravation by The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a lower court's grant of qualified immunity on a mentally ill prisoner's condition of confinement claim. Wisconsin prisoner Christopher Scarver is schizophrenic and delusional. He has murdered three people, two of them in prison …
WI Mother's Incarceration Not Enough to Terminate Her Parental Rights by Jodie W., a Wisconsin state prisoner, was incarcerated in July of 2002 for drunk driving. Her earliest possible release date was in March of 2006. She left her two-year-old son Max with her mother who soon contacted social services …
WI Transfer to CCA Prison Upheld by The plaintiff challenged his transfer to an out-of-state prison. At 974: ". . . [A] prisoner has no liberty interest in avoiding transfer to another prison, be it out-of-state, more restrictive, or owned and run by a private corporation." The transfer does not …
