Clergy Who Advocate for Prisoners Barred from Prisons and Jails by As described in this month’s cover story, prison and jail chaplains accused of sexual misconduct often resign, retire, are fired or are sometimes prosecuted. In other cases, though, well-meaning clergy members who seek to help prisoners have been locked …
$2.9 Million Settlement in Suit against GEO over Suspicionless Strip Searches by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke On May 20, 2010, a $2.9 million settlement was reached in a Pennsylvania federal civil rights lawsuit against GEO Group for performing suspicionless strip searches of people arrested for minor, non-violent, non-drug offenses. …
Pennsylvania Legislator / GEO Board Member Faces Criminal Charges by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke On November 12, 2009, Pennsylvania state representative John M. Perzel was charged with 82 counts of theft, conflict of interest, conspiracy, obstruction of justice and hindering apprehension or prosecution as a result of Attorney General …
Pennsylvania County Jail Settles Medical Indifference Suit for $55,000 by Butler County, Pennsylvania has agreed to settle a medical deliberate indifference lawsuit for $55,000. In April 2006, James Raub was arrested and taken to the Butler County Prison. During the booking process, he told guards and a nurse that he …
Pennsylvania Judges Involved in Corruption Case Face Liability; 5,000 Convictions Thrown Out by David Reutter by David M. Reutter A Pennsylvania U.S. District Court has granted absolute judicial immunity to two former state court judges in a consolidated class-action civil rights suit. That immunity, however, only applied to judicial acts, …
PLRA Attorney Fee Caps Constitutional, Third Circuit Decides by The provisions of the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA) that cap attorney fees do not violate equal protection, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit decided on May 28, 2009. Pennsylvania prisoner Glenndol Parker sued prison guard Joseph Conway …
Assessment of Prison Account Without Seizure of Funds Implicates Due Process in Third Circuit by Mark Wilson In an important case of first impression, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit held that an assessment of a prisoner’s trust account without an actual seizure of funds implicates a …
Allison v. GEO Group, PA, Settlement Agreement, strip search, 2010 Case 2:08-cv-00467-JD Document 60-3 Filed 03/01/10 Page 1 of 22 EXHIBITS TO MEMORANDUM OF LAW 1. Settlement Agreement, with following attached Exhibits: A. Proposed Claim Form B. Proposed Class Notice: Summary Notice (for mailing and posting), Longer Mailed Notice C. …
Swine Flu Widespread in Prisons and Jails, but Deaths are Few by David Reutter by David M. Reutter For hundreds of years the cramped, overcrowded and often filthy confines of dungeons, prisons, jails and other places of imprisonment have served as incubators for infectious diseases, which have killed more prisoners …
Pennsylvania Prisoner Gets $12,500 in Retaliation Suit After Remittitur by John E Dannenberg by John E. Dannenberg A pro se Pennsylvania state prisoner won a jury verdict of $5,000 in compensatory damages plus $100,000 in punitive damages against a prison official who openly and repeatedly retaliated against him after he …
Four Pennsylvania Jail Guards Fired, Two Resign Over Prisoner Beating by David Reutter by David M. Reutter Four Pennsylvania guards have been fired for beating a prisoner at the Westmoreland County Prison (WCP). The June 8, 2009 incident revealed a cover-up orchestrated by prison guards and their union leader. When …
Discovery Disputes in Suit Over Pennsylvania Jail MRSA Deaths by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke A Pennsylvania federal court has ordered medical personnel to answer deposition questions in a case involving the deaths of two prisoners due to MRSA at the Allegheny County jail. The court also appointed a special …
No Appeal In Section 2255 Proceeding Until Defendant Is Resentenced by Federal courts of appeal lack jurisdiction to entertain appeals from the grant or denial of relief under 28 U.S.C. § 2255 until proceedings in the district court have been finalized, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit …
Pennsylvania Prison Porn Ban Improperly Promulgated, but Not Unconstitutional by The Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania has held that a state prison rule prohibiting prisoners from receiving or possessing materials containing pornography or nudity was invalid because it was not promulgated as a regulation pursuant to the Commonwealth Documents Law. However, …
Pennsylvania County Prisons Mired in Conditions Litigation by David Reutter by David M. Reutter Whether or not a large number of lawsuits is indicative of management or operational problems at a prison or jail is a matter of debate that depends on one’s perspective – that is, which side of …
Former PA Lawmaker Who Took Sex Offenders into His Home Files Suit Against Zoning Board by Thomas E. Armstrong, a former tough-on-crime Pennsylvania lawmaker who took three registered sex offenders into his home in Marietta Borough, filed a lawsuit last year challenging a decision by zoning officials to force the …
Pennsylvania Private Juvenile Prison Scandal Results in Guilty Pleas by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke On June 9, 2009, attorney Robert J. Powell of Hazeltown, Pennsylvania pleaded guilty to charges related to an illegal scheme involving two for-profit juvenile facilities – PA Child Care in Luzerne County and Western PA …
$5.9 Million Settlement in Philadelphia Jail Strip Search Class Action by Philadelphia's prison system has agreed to pay $5.9 million to settle the claims of class members in a class action lawsuit alleging their rights were violated as the result of a strip search policy. The settlement does not include …
Pennsylvania Jail Mired in Scandal ... Again by by David M. Reutter With the suspension of two top officials at the Monroe County Correctional Facility (MCCF) in Snydersville, Pennsylvania, efforts to turn the jail around have hit yet another stumbling block. The February 27, 2009 suspensions – and later resignations …
Aramark Discontinues, Loses Prison Food Service Contracts by David Reutter by David M. Reutter The corporate philosophy of cutting corners to enhance profits is catching up with Aramark Correctional Services, causing the company to lose prison and jail food service contracts and putting other contracts in jeopardy. Aramark has discontinued …
