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Maine Judge Rules Prisoner's Nearly Two-Year Stay in Segregation Without Explanation Defies Due Process, Orders Hearing on Damages

Article • September 7, 2017

Filed under: Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement

Maine Judge Rules Prisoner's Nearly Two-Year Stay in Segregation Without Explanation Defies Due Process, Orders Hearing on Damages by Lonnie Burton by Lonnie Burton On March 23, 2015, Kennebec, Maine, Superior Court Justice M. Michaels Murphy found in favor of a state prisoner who claimed prison officials violated his due …

Maine State Prison Rescinds Bra-removal Policy for Female Visitors

Article • June 9, 2017 • from PLN June, 2017

Filed under: Visitor Searches

Maine State Prison Rescinds Bra-removal Policy for Female Visitors by When Air Force veteran Stacy Venable arrived at the Maine State Prison on February 11, 2017 to visit her nephew as she had several times a year for the past seven years, she was ushered through a metal detector as …

Maine DA Sued for Malicious Prosecution

Article • February 8, 2017 • from PLN February, 2017

Filed under: Prosecutor/Attorney General Misconduct, Malicious Prosecution, Evidence, Witnesses, Immunity/Liability, Prosecutorial Immunity

Maine DA Sued for Malicious Prosecution by “Absolute immunity” typically allows prosecutors to escape liability in the event of malicious prosecutions. Even when prosecutorial misconduct is exposed, the punishment is usually far less severe than that experienced by the victim of the state’s wrongdoing – such as spending many years …

“Natural Causes Killed Victor: A Death in Solitary,” a folk opera by George Swanson (DVD, 55 minutes)

Article • January 10, 2017 • from PLN January, 2017

Filed under: Commentary/Reviews, Reviews, Immigration, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Tapes/Music

“Natural Causes Killed Victor: A Death in Solitary,” a folk opera by George Swanson (DVD, 55 minutes) by Lance Tapley Written by George Swanson, a folksinger and Episcopal priest, this unusual folk opera tells how Victor Valdez, a sickly, working-class immigrant from the Dominican Republic, died in 2009 in solitary …

Fact of Incarceration May Be Used Against Father in Maine Parental Rights Termination Proceeding

Article • October 25, 2016

Filed under: Fathers in Prison, Parental rights, Children of Prisoners

Fact of Incarceration May Be Used Against Father in Maine Parental Rights Termination Proceeding by Lonnie Burton The Maine Supreme Judicial Court ruled on August 30, 2016, that a parent's incarceration may be used as a factor by a court in parental rights termination cases. The ruling affirmed a lower …

Jail Employees Steal from Prisoner Fund in Small-Town Maine

Article • August 23, 2016

Filed under: Misconduct/Corruption, Jail Misconduct, Jail Specific, Prisoner Property, Commissary

Jail Employees Steal from Prisoner Fund in Small-Town Maine by After stealing more than $7,200 from a so-called "inmate benefits account," a county jail employee in small-town Maine snitched on a co-worker and implicated his boss in the scam before finally resigning himself. Capt. Robert Gross, 62, filed his letter …

Widow of Murdered Maine Prisoner Paid $100,000 Settlement

Article • August 12, 2016

Filed under: Systemic Medical Neglect, Injury -- Misc., Diabetes, Failure to Treat, Malpractice, Failure to Protect (General), Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death)

Widow of Murdered Maine Prisoner Paid $100,000 Settlement by On February 26, 2014, Janet Weinstein, widow of murdered Maine state prisoner Sheldon Weinstein, was paid $100,000 to settle any claim she had against the State of Maine or Corizon, Inc., the provider of prisoner health care at the Maine State …

ME DOC ICS Rates confirmed July 2016

Kickback publication • July 6, 2016

ME DOC ICS Rates confirmed July 2016 Agencies | Online Services | Help | Page Tools Search Maine.gov GO Contact Us | Links | Sitemap Search Corrections HOME ADULT FACILITIES ADULT COMMUNITY CORRECTIONS About Us For Victims of Crimes Doing Business with DOC Career Opportunities Contact Us open in browser …

ME DOC ICS rate main page 2016

Kickback publication • July 6, 2016

Filed under: Telephone Rates

ME DOC ICS rate main page 2016 Agencies | Online Services | Help | Page Tools Search Maine.gov GO Contact Us | Links | Sitemap Search Corrections HOME ADULT FACILITIES ADULT COMMUNITY CORRECTIONS About Us For Victims of Crimes Doing Business with DOC Quality Assurance Administration Career Opportunities Contact Us …

Maine Legislators Not Informed Of Murder At Secure Mental Health Unit Occurring Before Funding Vote

Article • May 12, 2016

Filed under: DOC/BOP misconduct, Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death)

Maine Legislators Not Informed Of Murder At Secure Mental Health Unit Occurring Before Funding Vote by Christopher Zoukis Members of the Maine Legislature voted to enlarge the Mental Health Unit at Maine State Prison's Supermax facility last August, doubling its size to 32 beds.  What they did not know when …

Final Investigation - Inmate Death at Somerset County Jail 05-28, ME DOC, 2014

Publication • March 14, 2016

Filed under: Jail Misconduct, Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death), Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness)

Final Investigation - Inmate Death at Somerset County Jail 05-28, ME DOC, 2014 Department of Corrections State of Maine Department of Corrections State House Station 111 Tyson Building Augusta, ME 04333-0111 Operations Division Phone: (207) 287-2711 FAX: (207) 287-4370 Email: Bob.Lancaster@maine.gov Memorandum To: Ralph Nichols, Director of Operations, MDOC From: …

Minimal Number of Assaults Attributed to Prison-Issued Lock Cannot Support Claim

Article • March 7, 2016

Filed under: Failure to Protect (General), Eighth Amendment

Minimal Number of Assaults Attributed to Prison-Issued Lock Cannot Support Claim by The First Circuit Court of Appeals held two Maine prisoners failed to raise a triable issue of substantial risk of assault by a prison-issued padlock. Maine State prison (MSP) prisoners David Lakin and Gerard Landry suffered serious injury …

Maine Prisons "Safer" Despite Recent Killings and Assaults, Commissioner Says

Article • March 7, 2016

Filed under: Prisoner-Prisoner Assault, Databases, Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death), Juvenile Prisons, Failure to Protect (Staff)

Maine Prisons "Safer" Despite Recent Killings and Assaults, Commissioner Says by Christopher Zoukis At a press conference addressing the violent attempted escape of three juvenile prisoners, Maine State Department of Corrections Commissioner Joseph Ponte says Maine prisons are safer than they were three to four years ago.  His comments came …

First Circuit Reverses Summary Judgment for Retaliation Claim

Article • October 27, 2015

Filed under: Corizon, Retaliation against Staff, Summary Judgment, Appeals, Americans with Disabilities Act, Employee Litigation, Disabled Employees

First Circuit Reverses Summary Judgment for Retaliation Claim by First Circuit Reverses Summary Judgment for Retaliation Claim On February 6, 2013, the First Circuit Court of Appeals reversed summary judgment granted to Correctional Medical Services, Inc. ("CMS") for an alleged retaliation claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act. In spring …

Guard Admits Guilt, but Lawsuit Dismissed against Jail Supervisors

Article • September 25, 2015 • from PLN October, 2015

Filed under: Staff-Prisoner Assault, Jail Misconduct, Jail Specific

Guard Admits Guilt, but Lawsuit Dismissed against Jail Supervisors by Derek Gilna Guard Admits Guilt, but Lawsuit Dismissed against Jail Supervisors by Derek Gilna A civil rights complaint filed against officials at the Two Bridges Regional Jail in Wiscasset, Maine was dismissed by a federal court, even after a male …

McCue v. City of Bangor, ME, Magistrate Rec. on Summary Judgment, Excessive Forec and Deliberate Indifference, 2015

Brief • September 22, 2015

Filed under: Qualified Immunity, Mental Health, Protective Custody, Excessive Force (Police)

McCue v. City of Bangor, ME, Magistrate Rec. on Summary Judgment, Excessive Forec and Deliberate Indifference, 2015 Case 1:14-cv-00098-GZS Document 102 Filed 09/22/15 Page 1 of 27 PageID #: 954 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT DISTRICT OF MAINE MICHAEL MCCUE, Plaintiff, v. CITY OF BANGOR, et al., Defendants ) ) ) …

Whether Private Actors Entitled to Qualified Immunity Bypassed Due to Factual Dispute

Article • July 7, 2015 • from PLN July, 2015

Filed under: Corizon, Qualified Immunity, Contractor Liability, Medical Neglect/Malpractice

Whether Private Actors Entitled to Qualified Immunity Bypassed Due to Factual Dispute by Whether Private Actors Entitled to Qualified Immunity Bypassed Due to Factual Dispute The First Circuit Court of Appeals declined to rule on a question of whether qualified immunity is categorically unavailable to private medical contractors because disputed …

Former Nurse at Maine State Prison Files Suit Over Racial Slurs

Article • June 3, 2015 • from PLN June, 2015

Filed under: Corizon, Racial Discrimination, Employee Litigation

Former Nurse at Maine State Prison Files Suit Over Racial Slurs by Joe Watson Former Nurse at Maine State Prison Files Suit Over Racial Slurs by Joe Watson For the second time in as many years, allegations of racism have been leveled against employees at the Maine State Prison. In …

Prisoner Files Lawsuit after Being Pepper Sprayed in Restraint Chair

Article • May 6, 2015 • from PLN May, 2015

Filed under: Pepper Spray/Tear Gas, Restraints

Prisoner Files Lawsuit after Being Pepper Sprayed in Restraint Chair by Derek Gilna Prisoner Files Lawsuit after Being Pepper Sprayed in Restraint Chair by Derek Gilna A Maine state prisoner who was pepper sprayed at close range after being placed in a restraint chair is suing the prison captain who …

Maine Sheriff, Mired in Controversy, Defeated in Re-election Bid

Article • May 6, 2015 • from PLN May, 2015

Filed under: Police Misconduct

Maine Sheriff, Mired in Controversy, Defeated in Re-election Bid by Maine Sheriff, Mired in Controversy, Defeated in Re-election Bid The sheriff of Washington County, Maine has lost his bid for re-election following eight tumultuous years that left him beset with one highly-publicized incident after another. The Bangor Daily News reported …