Fulton County Jail under Federal Control by by David M. Reutter For the second time since 1999, Georgia Federal District Judge Marvin H. Shoob has taken over supervision of the Fulton County Jail. Fulton County Jail Sheriff, Jacquelyn H. Barrett, told the court to go ahead, telling the court that …
BOP Ad-Seg Rules Create a Liberty Interest by David Reutter by David M. Reutter The Eleventh Circuit court of Appeals has held that BOP administrative segregation policies create a liberty interest. The Court reversed a Georgia federal district court's order granting prison officials' motion to dismiss under Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(6) for …
Doctors of Death and the Medicalization of State Murder by Michael Rigby Doctors of Death and the Medicalization of State Murder by Michael Rigby Prisoners often wonder if prison medical personnel really have their best interests at heart. But in the case of Sanjeeva Rao, a Georgia prison doctor, there …
Williams v. Clinch County, GA, Reply in Support of Class Cert., Jail Fees, 2005 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF GEORGIA VALDOSTA DIVISION WILLIE FLOYD WILLIAMS, JR., and MICKLE JERMAINE JACKSON Plaintiffs, v. CLINCH COUNTY, GEORGIA; WINSTON PETERSON, Sheriff of Clinch County, in his official …
PLRA Fee Cap Upheld, Applied to Parole Case; Allows Fees-on-Fee Award by David Reutter The Eleventh Circuit Court held the attorney fee cap of the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA) applies to parole cases and is constitutional and allows a fees-on-fees award. Georgia prisoner Coleman Jackson filed a joint motion …
Manipulation of Crime Statistics and Use of Tax Dollars for Campaigning Revealed by David Reutter by David M. Reutter The public entrusts its law enforcement officials to protect it from crime and to use the tax dollars it provides to fulfill that duty. The manipulation of that trust has come …
Georgia Sheriff as "Arm of the State" Entitled to Eleventh Amendment Immunity by Bob Williams Ruling 6-5 en banc in a case of first impression, the Eleventh Circuit has found that Georgia sheriffs act as "arms of the state" and thus as state actors are entitled to Eleventh Amendment immunity …
Court Continues Oversight and Orders Corrections in Georgia Jail by David Reutter by David M. Reutter "The Court is totally out of patience with the assurances and promises that compliance will be achieved" with the Final Settlement Agreement signed on January 24, 2000. So said Judge Shoeb, U.S. District Court …
County Liable for Sheriff's Failure to Remove Invalid Warrant From Computer by The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals held that Georgia Sheriffs are a county policymaker regarding their duties in the maintenence and recall of criminal warrants thus making the county liable in a § 1983 action for the Sheriff's …
PHS Redux: Sued In A Dozen States, Contract Losses, Stock Plummets, Business Continues by by John E. Dannenberg Prison Health Services (PHS), a subsidiary of America Service Group, Inc. (ASG), continues to face lawsuits and lose contracts for its deplorable record of prisoner health care gaffes in a dozen states. …
False Information in Parole File May Violate Due Process by The use of false information in a parole file can be a due process violation, but such a claim cannot be conclusory and must specify the false information. A reduction in the frequency of parole consideration for persons with life …
Corruption Catches Up With Georgia Corrections Chief by by Gary Hunter Bobby Whitworth, former Corrections Commissioner and Parole Board Member, was booked into the Fulton County Jail on Friday, July 25, 2003. Charged with felony public corruption, Whitworth, 56, is the first such official ever to be indicted on corruption …
Georgia Jury Awards $325,000 to Prisoner's Widow in Legal Malpractice Case by Georgia Jury Awards $325,000 to Prisoner's Widow In Legal Malpractice Case On July 13, 2002, a Carroll Counrty, Georgia, jury awarded $325,000 to the widow of a prisoner who allegedly died due to medical malpractice and neglect. The …
Joinder of Georgia Annual Parole Hearing Injunction is Rejected by The Eleventh Circuit US Court of Appeals rejected the attempt of a Georgia life prisoner to use the mechanism of joinder (Fed.RulesCiv.Proc. Rule 20(a)) to gain the benefit of another life prisoner's injunction providing for annual parole consideration hearings. James …
Georgia Parole Board's "90% Policy" Ruled Ex Post Facto by Georgia Parole Board's "90% Policy" Ruled Ex Post Facto by John E. Dannenberg The United States District Court (N.D. Ga.) held that the retroactive application by the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles ("Board") of its 1998 policy revision requiring …
Georgia DOC to Provide Court Access With Computers, Legal Software by Georgia DOC To Provide Court Access With Computers, Legal Software The Georgia Department of Corrections (DOC) is changing the way it affords prisoners access to courts. Out are the six lawyers who provided prisoners with free legal assistance. In …
Georgia Parole Corruption Deepens by Gary Hunter A trail of corruption, greed, and cronyism has led to the indictment of a Georgia senator, the dismissal of an assistant attorney general and the resignation of six parole board members including the director and the chairman. Van Streat was suspended from his …
Punitive Damages Are Prospective Relief Under PLRA by David Reutter by David M. Reutter The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals has held that the PLRA makes punitive damages prospective relief that requires the district court to make a factual finding the award is narrowly drawn to correct the violation of …
