Attorney Fee Cap Inapplicable to Pre-PLRA Suits; PLRA Automatic Stay Provisions Constitutional by S.Ct. Grants Review of Fee Issue by Matthew T. Clarke The Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has held that the attorney fee cap contained within the Prison Litigation Reform Act, 42 U.S.C. §1997e(d), (PLRA) does …
PLRA Attorney Fee Provision Not Retroactive to Pre-PLRA Services by The Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit ruled in favor of attorneys for Michigan women prisoners, holding; (1) that attorney fee provision of the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA) does not apply retroactively, (2) that prisoners were prevailing party …
Private Health Care Providers Denied Qualified Immunity by Afederal district court in Alabama held that private party doctors and health care providers are not entitled to qualified immunity when sued by prisoners for Eight Amendment violations. The court further held that the existence of an on-going class action involving similar …
Alabama Counties Not Liable for Jail Conditions by The court of appeals for the eleventh circuit, sitting en banc, held that Alabama counties cannot be held liable for the operation of county jails. In doing so the court overturned prior circuit precedent on this issue. Phillip Turquitt was killed by …
MI Prison "Fee" Law Preempted by ERISA by Afederal district court in Michigan held that the State Correctional Facility Reimbursement Act (SCFRA), Mich.Comp.Laws.Ann. § 800.401 and Mich.Stat.Ann. § 28.1701, is preempted by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), 29 U.S.C. § 1000, which prevents the state from seizing pension …
Legislative Immunity For Local Jail Budget Votes by The Eleventh Circuit has held that county commissioners are entitled to absolute legislative immunity for failing to adequately fund a jail, thereby causing inadequate jail conditions Current and former Alabama jail prisoner plaintiffs sued alleging overcrowding, inadequate medical care and medical facilities, …
Sixth Circuit Requires Administrative Exhaustion by The court of appeals for the sixth circuit ruled that all prisoners filing § 1983 actions involving prison or jail conditions must allege, and prove, they have exhausted administrative remedies and a failure to do so will result in the dismissal, without prejudice, of …
Publications Lawsuit Settled in Alabama by Cayce Moore On February 28, 1998, U.S. district judge U.W. Clemon approved the final settlement in a lawsuit challenging a year of blanket censorship at Donaldson Correctional Facility (DCF), Alabama's highest security prison. In March, 1997, DCF warden Steve Dees implemented a policy that …
Consent Decree Termination Upheld by Consent Decree Termination Upheld: In the April, 1997, issue of PLN we reported Hadix v. Johnson , 947 F. Supp. 1100 (ED MI 1997) where a district court struck down 18 U.S.C. § 3626 as unconstitutional. Section 3626 allows for the immediate termination of consent …
No Interlocutory Appeals in Decree Terminations by The court of appeals for the Sixth circuit held that it lacks jurisdiction to hear interlocutory appeals in motions to terminate consent decrees. In 1984 the United States sued the state of Michigan over unconstitutional prison conditions. The lawsuit was settled with a …
Right to Psychiatric Care Clearly Established by The court of appeals for the sixth circuit held that prisoners' right to psychiatric care was clearly established and prison psychiatrists who failed to properly treat a suicidal prisoner were not entitled to qualified immunity from money damages. Anthony Wade was a mentally …
Michigan's Parole Amendments Constitutional by The court of appeals for the Sixth Circuit held that the 1992 amendments to Michigan's parole laws, that postpone initial mandatory review hearings for certain state prisoners and reduce the frequency of subsequent mandatory parole hearings, do not violate the Ex Post Facto Clause of …
Alabama HIV+ Prisoners Case Remanded Once Again for Proper RA Consideration by The court of appeals for the eleventh circuit held that prisoners asserting a claim to Rehabilitation Act (RA) protection had the burden of showing that they were "otherwise qualified" under the Act, or could be made so by …
Michigan Visiting Restrictions Upheld by In the June, 1996, issue of PLN we reported Bazetta v. McGinnis , 902 F. Supp. 765 (ED MI 1996) which denied a preliminary injunction to Michigan prisoners, and their visitors, challenging prison visiting restrictions. In 1995 the Michigan DOC amended the Michigan Administrative Code …
Grievance Exhaustion Required by The court of appeals for the sixth circuit held that 42 U.S.C. § 1997e(a) requires administrative exhaustion of all claims filed after the April 26, 1996, enactment of the Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA). Section 1997e(a) states that "no action shall be brought with respect to …
AL Jail Enjoined From Holding Prisoners Overnight by Afederal district court in Alabama held that conditions in the Pickens county jail in Carrolton, Alabama, were so abysmal it was not fit for human or animal habitation. Prisoners in the jail filed a class action suit challenging the conditions of their …
Alabama Jail Held in Contempt for Crowding by Afederal district court in Alabama held that a jail had willfully refused to comply with a consent decree limiting jail crowding and held the defendants in contempt and imposed sanctions of $100 per day for every prisoner held in the jail over …
Alabama AG Moves to Dissolve 17 Consent Decrees by Alabama Attorney General Bill Pryor and state Prison Commissioner Joe Hopper went into federal courts across the state July 2, 1997, moving (under provisions of the PLRA) to dissolve consent decrees governing conditions at three state prisons and 14 county jails. …
Americans with Disability Act Applies to Jails by In two separate rulings, federal district courts in Ohio and Michigan held that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) 42 U.S.C. § 12131 and the Rehabilitation Act (RA), 29 U.S.C. § 794, apply to county jails. Leonard Raufman was imprisoned in the …
Knowledge of Risk May Establish 8th Amendment Liability by The court of appeals for the sixth circuit held that a prison investigator's report indicating a prisoner was at risk of attack was sufficient to establish eighth amendment liability on the part of supervisory prison officials, if they read it. The …
