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Eighth Circuit Upholds Dismissal of Iowa Prisoner's Failure-to-Protect Suit

Article • June 11, 2015

Filed under: Failure to Protect (General)

Eighth Circuit Upholds Dismissal of Iowa Prisoner's Failure-to-Protect Suit by Eighth Circuit Upholds Dismissal of Iowa Prisoner's Failure-to-Protect Suit On August 18, 2014, the Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed an Iowa district court order which found for the defendants in a lawsuit brought by a prisoner alleging cruel …

$71,000 Settlement in Iowa Prisoner’s Sexual Harassment Claim

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

Filed under: Staff-Prisoner Harassment, Retaliation for Filing Grievances, Retaliatory Segregation, State Statutes

$71,000 Settlement in Iowa Prisoner’s Sexual Harassment Claim by David Reutter $71,000 Settlement in Iowa Prisoner’s Sexual Harassment Claim by David M. Reutter A former Iowa prisoner received a $71,000 settlement after being sexually harassed at her prison job in a case that established prisoners have civil rights protections with …

Parole Hearings Are "Prison Conditions" Subject to Exhaustion

Article • May 24, 2015

Filed under: Administrative Exhaustion (PLRA), Parole

Parole Hearings Are "Prison Conditions" Subject to Exhaustion by Parole Hearings Are "Prison Conditions" Subject to Exhaustion The U.S. District Court for the Eighth Circuit has held that challenges to parole hearings implicate "prison conditions" and thus are subject to the administrative exhaustion requirements of the Prison Litigation Reform Act …

Iowa DOC May Not Switch Administrative Law Judges in Mid-Disciplinary Process

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

Filed under: Disciplinary Hearings, Disciplinary Litigation

Iowa DOC May Not Switch Administrative Law Judges in Mid-Disciplinary Process by Matthew Clarke Iowa DOC May Not Switch Administrative Law Judges in Mid-Disciplinary Process by Matt Clarke On August 20, 2014, a federal district court held that the Iowa Department of Corrections (DOC) had violated a prisoner’s due process …

$50,000 Settlement for Prisoner’s Suicide at Iowa County Jail

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

Filed under: Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Suicides

$50,000 Settlement for Prisoner’s Suicide at Iowa County Jail by Gary Hunter $50,000 Settlement for Prisoner’s Suicide at Iowa County Jail by Gary Hunter Black Hawk County and NaphCare, Inc. have agreed to pay equal shares of a $50,000 settlement to the estate of a prisoner who hanged himself at …

Doctor of Death: Former Jail Physician Leaves Trail of Prisoner Deaths, Injuries

Article • April 9, 2015 • from PLN April, 2015

Filed under: Health Professionals, Ltd., Medication, Malpractice, Medical Neglect/Malpractice

Doctor of Death: Former Jail Physician Leaves Trail of Prisoner Deaths, Injuries by Matthew Clarke Doctor of Death: Former Jail Physician Leaves Trail of Prisoner Deaths, Injuries by Matt Clarke An Illinois doctor whose medical care – or lack thereof – was linked to the deaths of prisoners in multiple …

Eighth Circuit: Deliberate Indifference Standard GovernsMedical Care for Civilly Committed Detainees

Article • February 4, 2015 • from PLN February, 2015

Filed under: Sex Offenders (Discrimination), Qualified Immunity, Civil Commitment

Eighth Circuit: Deliberate Indifference Standard GovernsMedical Care for Civilly Committed Detainees by Mark Wilson Eighth Circuit: Deliberate Indifference Standard GovernsMedical Care for Civilly Committed Detainees by Mark Wilson On February 4, 2014, the Eighth Circuit reversed a district court’s denial of qualified immunity, finding that it had applied the wrong …

When Halfway Houses Pose Full-Time Problems

Article • January 10, 2015 • from PLN January, 2015

Filed under: Classification, Work Release, Staff-Prisoner Assault, Prisoner-Prisoner Assault, Community Education Centers, Contractor Misconduct, Prison Rebellion, Escapes, Failure to Protect (General), Rehabilitation/Recidivism, Alternative Sentencing

When Halfway Houses Pose Full-Time Problems by Derek Gilna When Halfway Houses Pose Full-Time Problems by Derek Gilna A recent interest among government officials in reducing prison populations as a way to cut costs, stemming from the 2008 Great Recession that resulted in significant budget deficits, has placed renewed emphasis …

Iowa Parole Search Condition is Not Search Consent; Warrantless Search Violated Iowa Constitution

Article • October 5, 2014

Filed under: Parole/Probation Searches, Parole Conditions

Iowa Parole Search Condition is Not Search Consent; Warrantless Search Violated Iowa Constitution by Mark Wilson Iowa Parole Search Condition is Not Search Consent; Warrantless Search Violated Iowa Constitution   by Mark Wilson   The Iowa Supreme Court held that a warrantless search of a parolee’s home violated the Iowa …

Iowa Governor’s Sentence Commutation Changes Good Time Rate

Article • October 5, 2014

Filed under: Good Time, Pardons/Clemency

Iowa Governor’s Sentence Commutation Changes Good Time Rate by Iowa Governor’s Sentence Commutation Changes Good Time Rate   The Iowa Supreme Court has held that a governor’s commutation of sentence has a legal effect of changing the rate a prisoner may accumulate earned time from the date of commutation forward, …

Eighth Circuit Upholds Injunction Over Cameras in Restrooms at Civil Commitment Center

Article • September 18, 2014 • from PLN September, 2014

Filed under: Videotaping, Civil Commitment

Eighth Circuit Upholds Injunction Over Cameras in Restrooms at Civil Commitment Center by Matthew Clarke Eighth Circuit Upholds Injunction Over Cameras in Restrooms at Civil Commitment Center by Matt Clarke In April 2013 the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a preliminary injunction granted by a federal district court in …

Byrd v. Iowa, IA, Order, Disciplinary Habeas Challenge, 2014

Brief • August 20, 2014

Filed under: Disciplinary Litigation, Disciplinary Appeals, Habeas Corpus

Byrd v. Iowa, IA, Order, Disciplinary Habeas Challenge, 2014

Qualified Immunity to Iowa DOC Director for Recalculating Prisoners’ Release Dates

Article • August 8, 2014 • from PLN August, 2014

Filed under: Overdetention, Qualified Immunity

Qualified Immunity to Iowa DOC Director for Recalculating Prisoners’ Release Dates by David Reutter Qualified Immunity to Iowa DOC Director for Recalculating Prisoners’ Release Dates by David M. Reutter The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld a district court’s grant of qualified immunity in a civil rights action brought …

Iowa state audit Community Corrections Improvement Association CCIA 2014

Publication • May 13, 2014

Filed under: Corrections Audits, Alternative Sentencing

Iowa state audit Community Corrections Improvement Association CCIA 2014 OFFICE OF AUDITOR OF STATE STATE OF IOWA Mary Mosiman, CPA Auditor of State State Capitol Building Des Moines, Iowa 50319-0004 Telephone (515) 281-5834 Facsimile (515) 242-6134 NEWS RELEASE FOR RELEASE Contact: Mary Mosiman 515/281-5835 or Tami Kusian 515/281-5834 January 10, …

Iowa: Parole Agreement Does Not Constitute Voluntary Consent that Justifies Warrantless Search

Article • April 15, 2014 • from PLN April, 2014

Filed under: Parole/Probation Searches, Vehicle Searches, Parole Conditions

Iowa: Parole Agreement Does Not Constitute Voluntary Consent that Justifies Warrantless Search by Last year the Supreme Court of Iowa reversed a parolee’s conviction on drug charges, holding that his acceptance of a search condition in a parole agreement did not constitute voluntary consent, and therefore a warrantless, suspicionless search …

Eighth Circuit: Federal Sentence Consecutive to Later-Imposed State Sentence

Article • April 15, 2014 • from PLN April, 2014

Filed under: Sentencing

Eighth Circuit: Federal Sentence Consecutive to Later-Imposed State Sentence by Mark Wilson On June 6, 2013, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals held that a prisoner was not entitled to credit toward his federal sentence for time already served on state charges. In March 2007, Charles Lee Elwell was arrested …

Iowa: Bad Faith or Misconduct can Overcome Mental-Process Privilege in Disciplinary Case

Article • February 15, 2014 • from PLN February, 2014

Filed under: Misconduct/Corruption, Judicial Misconduct, Disciplinary Litigation, Depositions

Iowa: Bad Faith or Misconduct can Overcome Mental-Process Privilege in Disciplinary Case by The Iowa Supreme Court has held that administrative law judges (ALJs) in the Department of Corrections (DOC) are entitled to assert the mental-process privilege in an Office of Ombudsman investigation, but that privilege may be overcome upon …

New Trial Granted in Jail Strip Search Case Following Jury Verdict; $385,000 Settlement

Article • February 15, 2014 • from PLN February, 2014

Filed under: Searches, Strip Searches, Arrestee Searches, Body Cavity Searches

New Trial Granted in Jail Strip Search Case Following Jury Verdict; $385,000 Settlement by Matthew Clarke On March 7, 2011, an Iowa federal district court granted a motion for a new trial after a jury awarded $259,155 to a woman who was improperly strip searched when she was arrested and …

Iowa Voting Rights Restoration Process Becomes Slightly Less Onerous

Article • December 15, 2013 • from PLN December, 2013

Filed under: Organizing, Voting

Iowa Voting Rights Restoration Process Becomes Slightly Less Onerous by Iowa is one of the toughest states in the nation for disenfranchised felons who want to obtain reinstatement of their voting rights, a review by the Associated Press found. When Republican Governor Terry Branstad took office in 2011, he reversed …

Renda v. Ackles, IA, Settlement, Sexual Harassment and Retaliation, 2013

Brief • November 27, 2013

Filed under: Staff-Prisoner Harassment, Retaliation for Filing Grievances

Renda v. Ackles, IA, Settlement, Sexual Harassment and Retaliation, 2013 SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT AND RELEASE This Settlement Agreement and Release is made and entered into by Plaintiff Melissa Lee Renda (Plaintiff), and Roxanne Conlin, and the State of Iowa, Jim Ackles, and Mike Thomas (collectively, the State). 1. Release and Discharge. …