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Michigan: Money Bilked From Prisoners

Article • September 15, 2005 • from PLN September, 2005

Filed under: Attorneys General, Money/Property, Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Guard Unions

Michigan: Money Bilked From Prisoners by Michigan: Money Bilked From Prisoners Used For Bonuses While Michigan was trying to boost its cash-starved budget through spending cuts and tax increases, those in the Attorney General's Office were feasting on money squeezed from state prisoners. In October 2004, Attorney General Mike Cox …

U.S. Supreme Court: Michigan Plea Bargainers Have Right to Counsel On Appeal

Article • September 15, 2005 • from PLN September, 2005

Filed under: Attorneys, Appointment of Counsel, Appeals

U.S. Supreme Court: Michigan Plea Bargainers Have Right to Counsel On Appeal by by John E. Dannenberg The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that Michigan defendants convicted pursuant to a plea of nolo contendre or to a plea bargain are constitutionally entitled to appeal their convictions to the Michigan Court of …

Gibson v. Blankstrom, MI, Wrongful Death, SJ Order 205

Brief • September 4, 2005

Filed under: Medication, Mental Health

Gibson v. Blankstrom, MI, Wrongful Death, SJ Order 205 Case 1:03-cv-00053-MOB Document 266 Filed 08/04/2005 Page 1 of 25 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT WESTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN SOUTHERN DIVISION ANTOINETTE GIBSON, Personal Representative of the Estate of OZY VAUGHN, Deceased, Case No. 1:03-CV-53 HON. RICHARD ALAN ENSLEN Plaintiff, v. JILL …

Settlements Reached In Alabama Women Prisoners' Class-Action Suit

Article • August 15, 2005 • from PLN August, 2005

Filed under: Gender Discrimination -- Women, Medical, HIV/AIDS, Systemic Medical Neglect, Dental Care, Tuberculosis, OB/GYN, STDs, Totality of Conditions, Failure to Protect (General), Overcrowding, Ventilation, Exercise, Sanitation, Laundry, Vermin, Exposure to Heat, Education, Settlements, Drug Treatment/Rehab

Settlements Reached In Alabama Women Prisoners' Class-Action Suit by by Matthew T. Clarke On August 23, 2004, U. S. District Judge Myron Thompson signed a settlement order in a class-action civil-rights lawsuit brought by prisoners at three Alabama Department of Corrections women's prisons challenging their conditions of confinement. The suit …

U.S. Supreme Court: Michigan Appellate Attorneys Have

Article • August 15, 2005 • from PLN August, 2005

Filed under: Criminal Prosecution, Appointment of Counsel, Public Defenders, Court Access, Standing, Appeals, State Legislation

U.S. Supreme Court: Michigan Appellate Attorneys Have by U.S. Supreme Court: Michigan Appellate Attorneys Have No Third Party Standing To Sue For Rights Of Future Unrepresented Prisoners by John E. Dannenberg The U.S. Supreme Court, sidestepping the important question of the constitutionality of a Michigan state law that prohibited appointment …

Michigan Guard Who Procured Hit On Prisoner Must Pay $200,000 Damages

Article • August 15, 2005 • from PLN August, 2005

Filed under: Misconduct/Corruption, Guard Misconduct, Failure to Protect (General), Administrative Exhaustion (PLRA), Damages

Michigan Guard Who Procured Hit On Prisoner Must Pay $200,000 Damages by by Marvin Mentor A Michigan federal jury returned verdicts of $75,000 in compensatory damages and $125,000 in punitive damages against a Michigan state prison guard who paid one prisoner six cigarettes to viciously pummel another. Michigan prisoner Barton …

Alabama Workers' Comp Act No Bar to Psychological Torts

Article • August 15, 2005 • from PLN August, 2005

Filed under: CMS, Prison Rebellion, Contractor Liability, Guards/Staff, Assaults on Staff, Employee Litigation, Failure to Protect (Staff)

Alabama Workers' Comp Act No Bar to Psychological Torts by The Alabama Court of Appeals held that Alabama's Workers' Compensation Act is not an exclusive remedy for tort claims of employees alleging purely psychological injuries. Three female employees of Correctional Medical Services, Inc. (CMS) brought suit against CMS employees of …

Private Youth Prison Gouging Michigan Taxpayers

Article • June 15, 2005 • from PLN June, 2005

Filed under: Private Prisons, GEO Group/Wackenhut

Private Youth Prison Gouging Michigan Taxpayers by Five years after beginning its first flirtation with for-profit prisons, Michigan is learning an invaluable lesson: Despite the hype, private prisons are not cost-effective. In the months following its 1999 opening, the Michigan Youth Correctional Facility (MYCF) was criticized over assaults, staff turnover, …

Sixth Circuit Clarifies "Verifying Medical Evidence" Requirement Of Napier

Article • June 15, 2005 • from PLN June, 2005

Filed under: Appendicitis, Civil Procedure, Summary Judgment, Complaints, Expert Witnesses

Sixth Circuit Clarifies "Verifying Medical Evidence" Requirement Of Napier by Sixth Circuit Clarifies "Verifying Medical Evidence" Requirement Of Napier The U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has held that when a prisoner's medical malady is so obviously serious that even a layman would easily recognize the need for medical attention, …

Battle Over Judicial Secrecy Continues

Article • June 15, 2005 • from PLN June, 2005

Filed under: Court Access, Judiciary, Court Appearances, Disclosure of Records

Battle Over Judicial Secrecy Continues by by Michael Rigby As the trend towards secrecy in the U.S. judiciary continues to grow, so does the constitutional debate over such practices as sealing cases, hiding proceedings, and conducting clandestine searches. Recent decisions by the D.C. and Second Circuits have been favorable, but …

Recharacterization Requires Notice Or Opportunity To Withdraw

Article • June 15, 2005 • from PLN June, 2005

Filed under: Complaints, Sentencing, Habeas Corpus

Recharacterization Requires Notice Or Opportunity To Withdraw by The U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals held that a Michigan prisoner's improperly filed medical claim should not have been recharacterized without his consent or an opportunity to withdraw, nor should it have been dismissed with prejudice. Eric Martin, a Michigan state …

Michigan Prisoner Awarded $376,525 For Back Injury Sustained In Crash

Article • May 15, 2005 • from PLN May, 2005

Filed under: Medical, Skeletal Disorder, Damages, Premises Liability

Michigan Prisoner Awarded $376,525 For Back Injury Sustained In Crash by A Michigan prisoner has been awarded $376,525 for back injuries sustained in a prison van crash. Lorenzo Johnson, a 40-year-old state prisoner, was being transferred from one prison to another when the van he was riding in hit a …

Michigan's Restrictive Placement Of HIV+ Prisoners Enjoined; $2 Million Damages Awarded

Article • May 15, 2005 • from PLN May, 2005

Filed under: Medical, HIV/AIDS, Damages, Settlements, Injunctions, State Law Claims, Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Americans with Disabilities Act, Rehabilitation Act

Michigan's Restrictive Placement Of HIV+ Prisoners Enjoined; $2 Million Damages Awarded by by John E. Dannenberg Winning a fifteen year state court battle, Michigan prisoners who tested positive for HIV (AIDS virus), and who were otherwise eligible to serve their time in community residential programs, camps or farms, gained the …

Qualified Immunity Denied In Failure To Protect And Delay of Emergency Treatment

Article • February 15, 2005 • from PLN February, 2005

Filed under: Injury -- Misc., Conditions of Confinement, Failure to Protect (General), Summary Judgment, Appeals, Qualified Immunity, Supervisory Liability

Qualified Immunity Denied In Failure To Protect And Delay of Emergency Treatment by Bob Williams Qualified Immunity Denied In Failure To Protect And Delay of Emergency Treatment by Bob Williams The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has held that guards are not entitled to qualified immunity for failing to segregate …

Alabama Settles Class Action Medical Suit; Institutes HCV Treatment Protocol

Article • February 15, 2005 • from PLN February, 2005

Filed under: HIV/AIDS, Systemic Medical Neglect, Respiratory, Tuberculosis, Diabetes, Hepatitis, Civil Procedure, Settlements, Expert Witnesses, Medical Neglect/Malpractice

Alabama Settles Class Action Medical Suit; Institutes HCV Treatment Protocol by John E Dannenberg Alabama Settles Class Action Medical Suit; Institutes HCV Treatment Protocol by John E. Dannenberg In a major milestone along the Southern Poverty Law Center's (SPLC) march towards gaining humane medical care in Alabama's prisons, a Settlement …

Uprisings at CCA Prisons Reveal Weaknesses in Out-of-State Imprisonment Policies

Article • January 15, 2005 • from PLN January, 2005

Filed under: Classification, Out of State Transfers, Corrections Corporation of America/CoreCivic, Contractor Misconduct, Guard Misconduct, Prison Rebellion, Escapes

Uprisings at CCA Prisons Reveal Weaknesses in Out-of-State Imprisonment Policies by by Matthew T. Clarke States strapped by tight budgets and pressed by a swell of prisoners are faced with the Hobson's choice of releasing prisoners early to ease overcrowding or building prisons they can ill afford to construct and …

Prisoner Stated Deliberate Indifference Claim, But Summary Judgment Denial Reversed

Article • January 15, 2005 • from PLN January, 2005

Filed under: Civil Procedure, Summary Judgment, Complaints, Appeals, Discovery, Qualified Immunity

Prisoner Stated Deliberate Indifference Claim, But Summary Judgment Denial Reversed by Prisoner Stated Deliberate Indifference Claim, but Summary Judgment Denial Reversed In a case with a long, unusual procedural history, the U.S. Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed a federal district court's denial of prison officials' motion to dismiss for …

Michigan Prison Art Project

Article • November 15, 2004 • from PLN November, 2004

Filed under: Prisoner Privileges, Education

Michigan Prison Art Project by Buzz Alexander 176 original plays created by prisoners in 18 Michigan prisons, another 107 in 4 juvenile facilities. 39 readings of original work in the prisons, 16 in the juvenile facilities, 40 anthologies. 9 Annual Exhibitions of Art by Michigan Prisoners: in the most recent, …

Settlement Brings Alabama DOC's Diabetic Treatment into 21st Century

Article • September 15, 2004 • from PLN September, 2004

Filed under: Private Prisons, Naphcare, Systemic Medical Neglect, Diabetes

Settlement Brings Alabama DOC's Diabetic Treatment into 21st Century by David Reutter by David M. Reutter The Alabama Department of Corrections (ADOC) agreed on January 15, 2004, to settle a lawsuit brought by diabetic prisoners by upgrading their medical care. The agreement sets a precedent for management and care of …

Denial of Dentures States Eighth Amendment Claim

Article • August 15, 2004 • from PLN August, 2004

Filed under: Medical, Dental Care

Denial of Dentures States Eighth Amendment Claim by The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit reversed a lower court's grant of summary judgment favoring an Alabama state prison dentist who did not timely furnish a prisoner with dentures. When Dean Farrow arrived at Alabama's Easterling Correctional Facility in …