Filing Fees Required in Civil Mandamus by The court of appeals for the tenth circuit held that the PLRA's filing fee requirements apply when a prisoner litigant seeks a writ of mandamus in an ongoing civil suit. The court did not discuss whether this applied to writs of mandamus in …
Media TRO Denied by A federal district court in Missouri held that a television station and prisoners had virtually no likelihood of success in challenging a prison system's ban on video taped interviews. A Missouri TV station began filming interviews with prisoners throughout MO prisons. After initially granting the interview …
Eyewitness News from Missouri by K.C. This is the eyewitness account of what went down here at the Jefferson City Correctional Facility on August 10, 1996. At about three in the afternoon, a prisoner in Four House was being seen on a [disciplinary] violation. The caseworker (guard) got loud with …
De Novo Review Required of Magistrate's Report by The court of appeals for the eighth circuit held that a district court's erroneous statement that no objections had been filed to a magistrate's report and recommendation constituted prima facie evidence that the district court did not perform the requisite de novo …
Missouri Haircut Rule Upheld under RFRA by Missouri Haircut Rule Upheld Under RFRA The court of appeals for the eighth circuit reversed a federal district court ruling which had held that a Missouri DOC rule requiring prisoners to have short hair and banning sweat lodges violated the Religious Freedom Restoration …
Limited Interlocutory Appeals in Medical Cases by The court of appeals for the eighth circuit held that the law is clearly established that a heart transplant patient is entitled to reasonable medical care. Whether he actually received that care was a factual question it lacked jurisdiction to answer. In 1985 …
No Right to Wages Under Interstate Compact by No Right to Wages under Interstate Compact The court of appeals for the eighth circuit held that neither the Interstate Corrections Compact nor Missouri state law required that Missouri prisoners held out of state be paid for their labor. Kenneth Jennings was …
Sexual Assault During Search Illegal by The court of appeals for the eighth circuit held that a guard who sexually harasses and assaults a prisoner during a strip search violates the fourth amendment. The court rejected the guard's defense that he was not a "state actor" for § 1983 purposes …
Fact Disputes Not Immediately Appealable by The court of appeals for the eighth circuit has ruled that it lacks jurisdiction to hear interlocutory appeals by prison officials challenging the sufficiency of the evidence against them. Milton Sanders, a Missouri state prisoner, filed suit claiming his eighth amendment rights were violated …
Interlocutory Appeals Discussed by The eighth circuit court of appeals has distinguished recent supreme court decisions as to when interlocutory appeals can be heard by appeal courts. Gerry Reece, a Missouri state prisoner, was in protective custody due to being a DEA informant and a snitch in a murder trial. …
No Jurisdiction for Some Appeals by The court of appeals for the eighth circuit has held that it lacks jurisdiction to hear appeals on issues not decided on the merits in the district court. Marlon Robinson, a Missouri state prisoner, filed suit claiming prison officials were deliberate indifferent to his …
Missouri Ad Seg Damages Award Upheld by The eighth circuit court of appeals has affirmed an award of money damages to Michael Weems, a Missouri state prisoner, who was denied a review hearing while in administrative segregation. The court reaffirmed that Missouri state prisoners have a due process liberty interest …
Medical Evidence Required to Win Delay Claim by The court of appeals for the eighth circuit has held that in order to prevail on an eighth amendment deliberate indifference to serious medical needs claim, the prisoner plaintiff must submit verifying medical evidence at the summary judgment stage. Larry Beyerbach, a …
Delay in Dental Care States Claim by The eighth circuit court of appeals has reaffirmed the long-standing principle that delaying dental care for prisoners violates the eighth amendment. Ronald Boyd, a Missouri state prisoner, began suffering pain to his jaw on June 1, 1991. He requested to see a dentist. …
Trial Required on Clothing Claim by When prison guards apply force maliciously and sadistically, they are violating the eighth amendment and can be held liable for their actions. Courtney Wilkens is a Missouri state prisoner. Prison guards claimed Wilkens was wearing gang colors in the prison dining hall and attempted …
Qualified Immunity RA Defense by The court of appeals for the eighth circuit has held that the affirmative defense of qualified immunity is available to government officials sued under the Rehabilitation Act (RA), 29 U.S.C. '794(a). McKinley Lue is a blind Missouri state prisoner who filed suit claiming he was …
Excessive Force Jury Instructions Affirmed by Robert Baker is a Missouri state prisoner. He filed suit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 claiming that his eighth amendment rights were violated when prison guards swept garbage and water into his cell after which he fell and injured himself. While being taken to …
MO Hair Cut Rule Violates RFRA by In the June, 1994 issue of PLN we reported passage of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) 42 U.S.C. § 2000bb and predicted that many states "grooming rules" which ban beards long hair etc. would likely be found unlawful under it. While we …
Retaliatory Threats Illegal by Leon Burgess is a Missouri state prisoner. Burgess disrupted a prison disciplinary hearing and guards responded by holding him down, while he was handcuffed, as another guard tried to force a towel into his mouth. When that failed the guard wrapped the towel around Burgess neck …
Retaliatory Infraction Illegal by Donald Dixon is a Missouri state prisoner. He filed suit under 42 U.S. C. § 1983 after a prison guard filed a retaliatory disciplinary charge against him after he filed a grievance. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the guard because the disciplinary …
