Search | Prison Legal News

Seventh Circuit Discusses Injury in Court Access Suits

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Court Access, Legal Materials, Law Library Access/Adequacy

Seventh Circuit Discusses Injury in Court Access Suits by The plaintiff, seeking post-conviction relief, was held in a jail whose law library he deemed inadequate, and he was not able to obtain disbursement forms to buy legal materials because he did not provide prison officials with the reason for his …

Lawsuit Filed Over Health Care at Wisconsin Women’s Prison, More Possible

Article • January 15, 2007 • from PLN January, 2007

Filed under: Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement

Lawsuit Filed Over Health Care at Wisconsin Women’s Prison, More Possible by Michael Rigby Lawsuit Filed Over Health Care at Wisconsin Women's Prison, More Possible by Michael Rigby The medical, dental, and mental health care provided to female prisoners at the Taycheedah Correctional Institution in Fon du Lac, Wisconsin, is …

Wisconsin “Boondoggled” Into Buying Broken Down New Private Prison

Article • January 15, 2007 • from PLN January, 2007

Filed under: Private Prisons, Financing, Dominion Group, Contractor Misconduct, State Legislation

Wisconsin “Boondoggled” Into Buying Broken Down New Private Prison by Wisconsin "Boondoggled" Into Buying Broken Down New Private Prison After buying a private prison for $87.1 million, the Wisconsin Legislature is crying foul upon discovering the Stanley prison violates electrical, plumbing, and safety codes that will cost $5 million to …

Wrongfully Imprisoned Wisconsin Man Awarded $400,000, Now Accused of Murder

Article • December 15, 2006 • from PLN December, 2006

Filed under: Sentencing, Wrongful Conviction

Wrongfully Imprisoned Wisconsin Man Awarded $400,000, Now Accused of Murder by Michael Rigby On February 14, 2006, a Wisconsin man who spent 18 years in prison for a rape he didnt commit settled his lawsuit against Manitowoc County for $400,000. Hell likely use the money to defend himself against a …

Wisconsin Prison Psychiatrists License Suspended After Prisoners Death

Article • December 15, 2006 • from PLN December, 2006

Filed under: Misconduct/Corruption, Medical Misconduct, Failure to Protect (General), Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Suicides

Wisconsin Prison Psychiatrists License Suspended After Prisoners Death by Gary Hunter Wisconsin Prison Psychiatrists License Suspended After Prisoners Death by Gary Hunter Yoges Pareek, had his medical license suspended by the Wisconsin Examining Board in October 2005. Pareek is a former psychiatrist at the Waupun Correctional Institution (WCT). He was …

Wisconsin Halfway House Overbills BOP; Fired Whistle blower Settles For $435,000

Article • November 15, 2006 • from PLN November, 2006

Filed under: Classification, Work Release, Contractor Misconduct, Retaliation against Staff, Drug Treatment/Rehab

Wisconsin Halfway House Overbills BOP; Fired Whistle blower Settles For $435,000 by John Dannenberg by John E. Dannenberg Federal jurors found that Rock Valley Community Programs (RVCP) in Janesville, Wisconsin and its chief executive officer, Irwin McHugh, had submitted false claims for reimbursement to the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP). …

Freedom From Religion Foundation Inc. v. Gonzales, Complaint, Taxpayer Money for Religious Institutions, 2006

Brief • November 1, 2006

Filed under: Religious Freedom, Denial of Religious Services, Taxation Offenses

Freedom From Religion Foundation Inc. v. Gonzales, Complaint, Taxpayer Money for Religious Institutions, 2006 FFRF v. Gonzales Page 1 of 6 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT WESTERN DISTRICT OF WISCONSIN FREEDOM FROM RELIGION FOUNDATION, INC.; ANNE NICOL GAYLOR; ANNIE LAURIE GAYLOR; and DAN BARKER, Plaintiffs, v. (Case No. 06 C 0244 …

Freedom From Religion Foundation Inc. v. Gonzales, Article on FFRF Website, Cancellation of "Single-Faith" Programming, 2006

Brief • October 27, 2006

Filed under: Religious Discrimination, Education, Religious Freedom

Freedom From Religion Foundation Inc. v. Gonzales, Article on FFRF Website, Cancellation of "Single-Faith" Programming, 2006 Freedom From Religion Foundation, Inc. WELCOME Home ABOUT FFRF Our Purposes Getting Acquainted Contact Us Legal Accomplishments PUBLICATIONS Freethought Today Books Brochures & Nontracts NEWS FFRF News Releases Freethought Radio Media Coverage Freethought of …

Years Long Pattern of Medical Neglect Defeats Summary Judgment

Article • October 15, 2006 • from PLN October, 2006

Filed under: Medical, Medication, Gastrointestinal, Appointment of Counsel, Complaints, Expert Witnesses

Years Long Pattern of Medical Neglect Defeats Summary Judgment by David Reutter by David M. Reutter The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has held that a prisoner's claim showing years of failure to adequately treat a medical problem is sufficient to defeat summary judgment. This civil rights action was filed …

$75,000 Settlement for Untreated Wisconsin Methadone Patient

Article • September 15, 2006 • from PLN September, 2006

Filed under: Medical, Medication, Drug/Alcohol Withdrawal

$75,000 Settlement for Untreated Wisconsin Methadone Patient by Michael Rigby Outagamie County, Wisconsin, has agreed to pay $75,000 to a man whose withdrawal from methadone went untreated at the county jail. Richard Foelker was participating in a methadone treatment program for heroin addiction when he checked himself into the Outagamie …

Transgender Wisconsin Prisoners Continue Hormone Treatment Despite Law

Article • August 15, 2006 • from PLN August, 2006

Filed under: Preliminary Injunctions/TRO's, Transgender, Transgender Medical Procedures, State Legislation

Transgender Wisconsin Prisoners Continue Hormone Treatment Despite Law by Michael Rigby On January 25, 2006, a federal court in Wisconsin issued an emergency injunction to prevent the state from discontinuing hormone therapy for three transgender prisoners, despite a new state law banning the therapy. In January 2006 the Wisconsin legislature …

Freedom From Religion Foundation Inc. v. Chao, 7th Circuit, Opinion Denying Rehearing, 2006

Brief • May 3, 2006

Filed under: Tax Law, Religious Freedom, Taxation Offenses

Freedom From Religion Foundation Inc. v. Chao, 7th Circuit, Opinion Denying Rehearing, 2006 Freedom From Religion Foundation, Inc. v. Chao, 447 F.3d 988 (2006) 447 F.3d 988 United States Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit. FREEDOM FROM RELIGION FOUNDATION, INC., et al., Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. Elaine L. CHAO, Secretary of Department of …

Fair Labor Standards Acts Minimum Wage Provision Not Applicable to Private Prisons

Article • April 15, 2006 • from PLN April, 2006

Filed under: Out of State Transfers, Private Prisons, Corrections Corporation of America/CoreCivic, Prison Industries, Prison Labor, Fair Labor Standards Act

Fair Labor Standards Acts Minimum Wage Provision Not Applicable to Private Prisons by Fair Labor Standards Acts Minimum Wage Provision Not Applicable to Private Prisons The Seventh Circuit Appeals Court affirmed a lower courts decision that held prisoners are not entitled to the minimum wage provision of the Fair Labor …

Wisconsin Prison Employee Raped By Prisoner Awarded $366,000

Article • March 15, 2006 • from PLN March, 2006

Filed under: Sexual Assault, Prisoner-Staff Assault, Damages, Title VII, Supervisory Liability, Employee Litigation

Wisconsin Prison Employee Raped By Prisoner Awarded $366,000 by On April 8, 2005, a federal jury awarded $366,000 to a Wisconsin prison employee who was raped by a prisoner. The 51-year-old female plaintiff, a non-security employee of the Wisconsin Department of Corrections was raped by a knife-wielding prisoner on December …

Seventh Circuit Reverses Judgment on Denial of Methadone

Article • February 15, 2006 • from PLN February, 2006

Filed under: Medical, Medication, Drug Treatment/Rehab

Seventh Circuit Reverses Judgment on Denial of Methadone by The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a district court's grant of summary judgment to jail officials on claims of denial of methadone and inadequate medical care. On April 27, 2000, Richard Foelker reported to the Outagamie County, Wisconsin, Jail to …

Prisoners Labor at Wisconsin Wal-Mart Site

Article • February 15, 2006 • from PLN February, 2006

Filed under: Work Release, Work, Prison Labor

Prisoners Labor at Wisconsin Wal-Mart Site by by Michael Rigby Wal-Mart is using prison labor to build a new distribution center in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin. Local residents have expressed safety concerns and also worry that lower paid prisoners are siphoning jobs away from the community. Prisoners working at the Wal-Mart …

Wisconsin Must Install Air Conditioning in Supermax

Article • January 15, 2006 • from PLN January, 2006

Filed under: Conditions of Confinement, Exposure to Heat, Consent Decrees (PLRA)

Wisconsin Must Install Air Conditioning in Supermax by The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a district court order requiring prison officials to take immediate steps to air condition the cells of Wisconsin's supermax prison. In 2000, two prisoners confined in the Supermax prison in Boschobel, Wisconsin brought suit alleging …

Seventh Circuit Reverses § 1915(e)(2) Dismissal of Meritorious Complaint

Article • January 15, 2006 • from PLN January, 2006

Filed under: Filing Fees (PLRA), RLUIPA, Religious Freedom, Denial of Religious Services

Seventh Circuit Reverses § 1915(e)(2) Dismissal of Meritorious Complaint by by Bob Williams The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has reversed a Wisconsin Federal District Court's dismissal of a prisoner complaint the district court found to have probable merit but dismissed under 28 U.S.C. § 191S(e)(2) screening because …

Freedom From Religion Foundation Inc. v. Chao, 7th Circuit, Taxpayer Standing, 2006

Brief • January 13, 2006

Filed under: Religious Freedom, Taxation Offenses

Freedom From Religion Foundation Inc. v. Chao, 7th Circuit, Taxpayer Standing, 2006 433 F.3d 989 (2006) FREEDOM FROM RELIGION FOUNDATION, INC., et al., Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. Elaine L. CHAO, Secretary of Department of Labor, et al., Defendants-Appellees. No. 05-1130. United States Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit. Argued September 13, 2005. Decided …

Seventh Circuit Reverses Dismissal of BOP Medical Neglect Case;

Article • November 15, 2005 • from PLN November, 2005

Filed under: Pain, Gastrointestinal, Eyeglasses, Appointment of Counsel, Expert Witnesses, Federal Statutory Law, Federal Tort Claims Act

Seventh Circuit Reverses Dismissal of BOP Medical Neglect Case; by District Court Abused Discretion in Denying Counsel The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a lower court's denial of the appointment of counsel to a prisoner. The court also vacated the grant of summary judgment to prison officials on medical …