Another Death in a Wisconsin Prison by Gary Hunter "Unremarkable." That's what prison nurse Jolinda Waterman called Donnie Powe's condition when she relegated him to an observation cell. Guards perfunctorily recorded his declining health right up until he died, face down on the floor of his 6 by 8 foot …
Wisconsin Pro Se Co-Plaintiffs Must Maintain Separate § 1983 Actions by Wisconsin Pro Se Co-Plaintiffs Must Maintain Separate § 1983 Actions Federal district court Chief Judge Bar-bara B. Crabb, of the Northern District of Wisconsin, has decided that all pro se prisoner plaintiffs filing in this district must file and …
Impeding Grievance Exhaustion May Violate Access to Courts by A U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin held that a prisoner's access to court was impeded because jail officials interfered with his ability to exhaust his administrative remedies with respect to several non-frivolous claims, which were dismissed for …
CCA Closes Oklahoma Prison, Settles Tax Lawsuit Over Ohio Prison by Michael Rigby The turbulent economy of the past decade has led many communities across America to foolishly seek prisons as a recession proof industry and rural welfare program for poor whites. But prisons can be a double edged sword, …
Wisconsin Prisoners' Riot Charges Expunged From Records by The Wisconsin Court of Appeals has affirmed a circuit court's order overturning and expunging seven prisoners' disciplinary infractions for participating in a riot, barring future disciplinary action premised upon the riot, but allowing proceedings for future administrative confinement for involvement in the …
Immunity Granted to Wisconsin Sex Offenders in Treatment by Immunity Granted to Wisconsin Sex Offenders in Treatment The Wisconsin Supreme Court has held that Gary Tate is entitled to immunity for statements made at court imposed sex offender treatment, and the revocation of his probation for refusing to make admissions …
Overt Act Unnecessary to Allege Conspiracy Claim in 7th Circuit by The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit held that it is not necessary to allege an overt act to state a conspiracy claim. The court also held that dismissal of a prisoner's retaliation claim for failure …
Pregnant Wisconsin Prisoner Punished for Sexual Contact While Guard Walks Free by Lonnie Burton In December, 2002, a mentally ill female prisoner at the Taycheedah Correctional Institution (TCI) in Wisconsin was given a year of solitary confinement after being impregnated by a prison guard, while the guard, Mathew Emery, was …
No Right to Renounce Citizenship - U.S. Not "at War" by No Right to Renounce Citizenship - U.S. Not "at War" Judge Bernice B. Donald of the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee has denied habeas corpus relief to a Wisconsin prisoner seeking to renounce his …
Wisconsin Lacks Authority Over Funds of Out-of-State Prisoners by A federal court in Wisconsin held that the Wisconsin Department of Corrections (WDOC) lacks the authority to divert the funds of an out-of-state prisoner into a release account, or to cause the receiving state to do so. In 1998, Wisconsin prisoner …
Parents of Deceased Wisconsin Boot Camp Prisoner Settle for $462,000 by The parents of a Wisconsin state prisoner who died due to exercise stress after his medical complaints were ignored settled their wrongful death suit for $462,000. The Homeslys were parents of a male 20-year-old Wisconsin state prisoner who died …
Sandin Applied to Wisconsin Sexual Offender Civil Commitment by In analyzing a district court's order finding Richard Thielman, a sexual offender civil committee, did not have a liberty interest from being restrained by waistchains, blackbox, and leg irons when being transported outside the Wisconsin Resource Center for medical treatment, the …
Failure to Timely Raise Exhaustion Defense Waives that Defense by Failure To Timely Raise Exhaustion Defense Waives That Defense In a successful class-action 42 USC § 1983 civil rights complaint brought by seriously mentally ill Wisconsin Supermax prisoners for injunctive relief [see 164 F.Supp.2d 1096], prison official defendants' motion to …
7th Circuit Denies Qualified Immunity on ETS Claim by The Seventh Circuit Court of Ap-peals held that prison officials were not entitled to qualified immunity on a claim of exposure to environmental tobacco smoke (ETS). Wisconsin DOC prisoner Chad J. Alvarado brought suit against prison officials alleging an Eighth Amendment …
Prisoners, Politics, Money and the Census by Gary Hunter It's a standing joke that the Texas economy has been grounded in the 3 C's: cattle, crude, and convicts. But while Texas gets most of the publicity for its massive prison build-up, the human-warehousing trend is literally sweeping the countrysideand it …
Prison Guards Can Be Liable for Prisoner Suicide by The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has reversed and remanded the dismissal of a 42 U.S.C. §1983 suit against Wisconsin prison officials. In so ruling, the court held that prison guards can be held liable under Eighth Amendment "deliberate indifference" claims …
Settlement Agreement Reached in Wisconsin Supermax Suit by John E Dannenberg by John E. Dannenberg Wisconsin Department of Corrections (DOC) officials settled the 42 USC § 1983 class action civil rights suit brought by seriously mentally ill prisoners housed in the Boscobel, WI Supermax state prison by agreeing not to …
Wisconsin DOC in Contempt for Not Collecting PLRA Fees by Wisconsin DOC in Contempt For Not Collecting PLRA Fees The US District Court (E.D. Wis.) issued an Order to Show Cause to Wisconsin DOC Secretary Jon E. Litscher as to why he should not be held in contempt for declaring …
Forced AA/NA for Parolee Defeats Qualified Immunity by A Wisconsin federal district court has held that officials are not entitled to qualified immunity when they require atheist parolees to participate in religious based substance abuse programs. John Bausch, a former prisoner and parolee, filed an action under 42 U.S.C. § …
Failure to Timely Pay Filing Fee Dismissal Reversed by The Court of Appeals for the Seventh circuit held that a district court erred when it dismissed a prisoner's suit for failure to pay the filing fee in a timely manner. Bernard Beyer, a Wisconsin prisoner held in a private prison …
