No Privacy Rights for Sex Offender Registrants by The Third Circuit ruled that sex offenders required to register under "Megan's Law" have no protected right to privacy that would render unconstitutional the public dissemination of such information. This is not the first time the 3rd Circuit has upheld Megan's Law. …
FBI Investigates CCA-Run INS Center in New Jersey by A Corrections Corporation of America operated immigrant detention center in Elizabeth, New Jersey is under investigation due to alleged misconduct by company employees. Federal officials confirmed on April 13, 1999 that the U.S. Dept. of Justice had requested the probe, which …
PLRA Doesn't Affect Court Contempt Powers by A federal district court in New Jersey held that 18 U.S.C. § 3626, which allows for the immediate termination of prison and jail consent decrees, does not affect the contempt powers of courts. The underlying case involves a motion by jail detainee plaintiffs …
Parole Officials Liable for False Information in Parole Violation Arrest Warrant by A federal district court in New Jersey has held that parole officials are liable for causing the arrest of a parolee based upon false information. Robert Friedland, a New Jersey state prisoner, was paroled in August, 1995. Subsequently …
New Jersey Guard's Killer Gets Life by Steven Beverly was convicted for the 1997 killing of a Bayside State Prison (New Jersey) guard. But two days later, November 11, 1998, the jury of seven men and five women said they were deadlocked on whether he should be executed. Under state …
New Jersey Porn Ban Struck Down by In two separate rulings a federal court in New Jersey held that a New Jersey statute prohibiting imprisoned sex offenders from receiving or possessing sexually oriented materials was unconstitutional. The two rulings consist of a preliminary injunction and a permanent injunction enjoining the …
Administrative Exhaustion Doesn't Include Judicial Remedies by The court of appeals for the Third circuit held that the Prison Litigation Reform Act's (PLRA) administrative exhaustion requirement does not include judicial exhaustion as well. Hassan Jenkins, a New Jersey state prisoner, filed suit in federal court claiming his due process rights …
Temporary Injunction Issued to Prevent Sex Offender Notification to Employer by A federal court in New Jersey has issued a temporary injunction to prevent state parole officials from notifying a paroled sex offender's employer of his parole status and criminal history. John Doe is a paroled New Jersey state sex …
AEDPA Statute of Limitations Tolled by The court of appeals for the Third circuit held that the one year statute of limitations in which to file a federal habeas corpus petition is a statute of limitation subject to tolling. In 1994 Frank Miller, a New Jersey state prisoner, was found …
PLRA Immediate Termination Provisions Unconstitutional by Afederal district court in. New Jersey has declared unconstitutional the provisions of the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA), 18 U.S.C. § 3626(b)(2)(3), permitting the immediate termination of consent decrees. In 1983, Robert Lee Denike and Kenneth Vespa, New Jersey state prisoners, sued prison officials …
Qualified Immunity No Protection for ADA Injunctive Claims by In the October, 1998, issue of PLN we reported Rouse v. Plantier , 987 F. Supp. 302 (D NJ 1997) which involves a class action lawsuit challenging the adequacy of treatment that diabetic prisoners receive in New Jersey state prisons. In …
Abuses Continue at Private INS Facility by Alex Friedmann The Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) continues to experience problems at a privately -operated detention center in Elizabeth, New Jersey. In June 1995 detainees rioted at the facility, which was then run by Esmore Correctional Services. The detainees mostly asylum-seekers who …
Trial Required in New Jersey Diabetic Care Suit by Afederal district court denied New Jersey prison authorities their motion for summary judgment against diabetic prisoners' class action suit under 42 USC § 1983. The prisoners' complaint was that the medical care provided by the Adult Diagnostic and Treatment Center (ADTC) …
Zero Tolerance Drug Policy in New Jersey by New Jersey Corrections authorities began a "zero tolerance" policy in May, 1998. Under the new policy, prison staff are cracking down on prisoners who use drugs or alcohol by taking contact visits as punishment according to an article published by the Associated …
NJ Prisoners Refuse to Swallow PINs by Approximately two years ago, the entire NJ prison system switched to an "automated call" phone system. Despite a predicted hike in costs to family and friends of prisoners, very few prisoners objected in a short-lasting boycott. On September 15, 1997, the prison population …
Mailbox Rule Applied to Habeas Petitions by The court of appeals for the Third circuit extended the mailbox rule to habeas corpus petitions, holding that habeas petitions are considered filed when given to prison officials for mailing. Donald Burns, a New Jersey state prisoner, gave his federal habeas petitions to …
STGMU-tized in New Jersey by T.R. On March 4, 1998, approxmately 170 NJ state prisoners were rounded up by the Special Operation Group (S.O.G.) and Internal Affairs, cameras in hand, and shipped to this [Northern State] prison. We were handed a memo signed by the Assistant Commissioner, Howard Beyers and …
Union County, NJ, Jail Guards Convicted by In June, 1995, twenty-five political asylum seekers were hauled in chains from a federal INS Detention Center in Elizabeth, NJ, to the nearby Union County Jail. The 25 immigrant detainees many of whom are refugees who escaped religious and political persecution in their …
New Jersey Mental Health Class Action Gains Momentum by Steve Vaccaro Afederal district court in New Jersey has upheld the claims of a statewide class of mentally ill prisoners against defendants' motions to dismiss and for summary judgment. The defendants are: officials of the New Jersey Department of Corrections; Correctional …
Community Notification Upheld by Three Circuits by In the December, 1997, PLN we reported Doe v. Gregoire , 960 F. Supp. 1478 (WD WASH. 1997), wherein a district court ruled that Washington's "community notification" statute violates the ex post facto clause insofar as releasing information to the public regarding sex …
