Confidential Settlement for Denial of HIV Drugs to Florida Jail Prisoners by An undisclosed settlement has been reached in a lawsuit by two former prisoners at Florida’s Broward County Jail. The lawsuit alleged that the Sheriff’s Office and Armor Correctional Health Services showed “callous indifference” to the medical needs of …
$110,000 Award for Florida Man Falsely Arrested for Child Molestation by A Florida jury awarded a man $10,000 for being falsely arrested on a child molestation charge. Following the verdict, the trial court awarded the man an additional $100,000. The plaintiff lived next to a 5-year-old girl. In 2005, the …
Florida DOC’s Pen Pal Advertisement Prohibition Challenged by The operators of two pen pal advertising services have filed a federal lawsuit challenging the Florida Department of Corrections’ rule that prohibits prisoners from receiving information from or posting ads with pen pal advertisement services. The lawsuit was filed by the Florida …
Florida Prison Guards Fired, Suspended for Shocking Children with Stun Guns by David Reutter by David M. Reutter The Florida Department of Corrections (FDOC) has fired three guards, demoted a warden and disciplined other employees following an investigation into dozens of children being shocked with stun guns during “Take Our …
Florida Gain Time Law Application Violates Ex Post Facto Clause by Florida’s First District Court of Appeal has held that application of a 1983 gain time statute to a prisoner who committed his offense in 1981 violated the ex post facto clause. Before the appellate court was a petition for …
Florida DOC and Keefe Gouge Prisoners on Commissary Sales by David Reutter by David M. Reutter While the economic downturn has caused the price of goods and commodities to decrease in the free world, the cost of items in Florida’s prison canteens has skyrocketed under a new contract. Florida law …
$1.8 Million Settlement in Beating of Florida Jail Prisoner by by David M. Reutter Florida’s Broward County Sheriff’s Office (BCSC) agreed to pay $1.8 million to settle a civil rights action, in mid-trial, brought by a former prisoner who was left brain damaged after a beating from other prisoners, who …
Florida: For Sentence Calculation Purposes, Civil Commitment Detention Same as Jail Confinement by Florida’s Fourth District Court of Appeal has held that there is no meaningful distinction between incarceration in prison or jail and confinement in a sex offender civil commitment facility for the purposes of sentence calculation. The Court’s …
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 …
Using Chemical Agents on Mentally Ill Prisoners Unconstitutional by David Reutter by David M. Reutter As the mentally ill become more prevalent within the nation’s prison population, guards and prison administrators face a dilemma when confronted with such a prisoner who is not conforming to prison rules. While it said …
Working in Legal Field Not Prohibited While on Federal Supervised Release by Federal probation officers cannot restrict persons on supervised release from working as legal assistants, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit held on April 8, 2009. Yraida L. Guanipa, convicted of attempted possession with intent to …
Florida Court Loses Jurisdiction to Enter Restitution Order upon Completion of Sentence by Florida’s Fifth District Court of Appeal has held that a trial court lacks authority to enter a restitution order against a defendant who has completed his sentence. The court’s order comes in the appeal of Kelly R. …
Florida Prisoner Entitled to Previous Prison Credit upon Probation Violation by Florida’s Fourth District Court of Appeal reversed a trial court’s order, dismissing a Rule 3.800(a) motion to correct an illegal sentence, remanding with instruction to make a notation in the written sentence that the prisoner is entitled to receive …
Eleventh Circuit Reverses Dismissal of Challenge to Florida DOC Ban on Pen Pal Requests by The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals has reversed a district court order dismissing a Florida prisoner’s civil rights action that challenged a prison policy which prohibited him from sending letters to churches and ministers requesting …
Denial of Bedding, Clothes to Florida Prisoner States Claim by Florida’s First District Court of Appeal held that a prisoner’s civil rights complaint alleging that a guard denied him blankets, bed sheets and clean clothing for four-and-a-half months, causing illness and injury, stated a claim that was sufficient to withstand …
Florida’s Private Prisons Still Lack Meaningful Oversight by David Reutter by David M. Reutter Florida’s Office of Program Policy Analysis and Government Accountability (OPPAGA) has issued a report that finds that oversight of the state’s private prisons has strengthened under the Department of Management Services (DMS) but significant weakness still …
Federal Prison Guards’ Convictions Affirmed in Sex Scandal by David Reutter by David M. Reutter The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld the convictions of two guards convicted in a sex-for-contraband scheme at the Women’s Federal Correctional Institute in Tallahassee, Florida. PLN previously reported the arrests and indictments in …
Judge Not: Judges Benched for Personal Misconduct by by Gary Hunter & Alex Friedmann They decide hot-button topics ranging from abortion and racial discrimination to religious freedoms and contested elections. They can put you in prison or vindicate your civil rights. They can even sentence you to death. Who am …
Florida Guard Convicted of Assaulting Prisoner by On January 16, 2009, a federal jury in Jacksonville, Florida found a former state prison guard guilty of a federal felony civil rights violation for assaulting a prisoner in August 2005. The prisoner, who was not named, allegedly feigned illness by lying on …
Miami’s Sex Offender Bridge Encampment Continues to Grow by David Reutter by David M. Reutter Population: 52. That’s how many sex offenders have been forced to live under the Julia Tuttle Causeway in Miami, Florida as of March 2009. In late 2007, the population was only 19. [See: PLN, June …
