Mother of Prisoner Who Died at Texarkana Jail Challenges $200,000 Settlement; Nurse Pleads Guilty by Matthew Clarke by Matthew Clarke On November 11, 2017, notice of a $200,000 settlement was filed in a federal lawsuit over the death of a diabetic Texarkana jail prisoner who died after a nurse ignored …
Lydon v. McCormick, AK, Complaint, Civil Rights Violation, 2018 Case 6:18-cv-06078-SOH-BAB Document 1 Filed 08/29/18 Page 1 of 23 PageID #: 27 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT WESTERN DISTRICT OF ARKANSAS HOT SPRINGS DIVISION CANDACE PAIGE LYDON vs. cAsE No. \'6 .. lo O 1 '6 US DiSTRICT COURT …
Lawsuit Against Private Prison Firm Over Prisoner’s Death at Texarkana Jail by Matthew Clarke by Matthew Clarke The family of a prisoner who died at the Bi-State Jail in Texarkana has filed a federal civil rights suit alleging his death resulted from inadequate medical care. The jail is unique in …
Arkansas and Oklahoma Rehab Programs Sued for Using Court-ordered Defendants for Forced Labor by David Reutter by David Reutter A federal lawsuit filed in October 2017 accuses an Arkansas-based drug rehab center of “human trafficking and forced labor” for abusing a court-ordered pre-trial diversion program. The rehab center reportedly compelled …
Arkansas Supreme Court finds reimbursement from a §1983 settlement improper by An Arkansas Supreme Court reversed and remanded a circuit court’s order granting reimbursement to the state the costs associated with Dexter Harmon’s incarceration. The court ruled that reimbursement from a §1983 settlement was improper because the circuit court failed …
State Criminal Justice Reform Efforts Gaining Traction by Christopher Zoukis by Christopher Zoukis On the federal level, hopes for criminal justice reform have fallen victim to partisan bickering in Congress and a lack of substantive interest from the White House. Fortunately, state officials are not waiting around, and state-level reform …
Vera Institute of Justice--The New Dynamics of Mass Incarceration Report, 2018 The New Dynamics of Mass Incarceration Jacob Kang-Brown, Oliver Hinds, Jasmine Heiss, and Olive Lu June 2018 From The Director The turn of the century marked a new direction for the nation’s prisons and jails: after three decades of …
Vera Institute of Justice--The New Dynamics of Mass Incarceration Fact Sheet, 2018 The New Dynamics of Mass Incarceration After decades of continuous and unified growth across all states from the 1970s to the early 2000s, the landscape of U.S. incarceration fragmented into distinct trends. The last decade has been characterized …
Arkansas Woman Awarded $4,000 by Federal Jury Against Texarkana Police by Christopher Zoukis by Christopher Zoukis After suing Texarkana Police over Fourth Amendment civil rights violations, a female truck driver was awarded $4,000 in damages by an Arkansas federal jury. On October 25, 2005, long-haul truck driver Bobbie Green …
Arkansas Conducts Four Executions in One Week Due to Expiring Lethal Injection Drugs by David Reutter by David M. Reutter As its lethal injection drug supply neared expiration last year, Arkansas embarked upon the most ambitious death penalty plan since capital punishment was revived by the Supreme Court in 1976: …
Arkansas Supreme Court: Religious Freedom Preliminary Injunction Requires Hearing by The Arkansas Supreme Court held on March 16, 2017 that a lower court abused its discretion by denying a prisoner’s motion for a preliminary injunction without holding a hearing. Arkansas prisoner Malik Muntaqim is a member of the Nation of …
Multiple Lawsuits Allege “Slave Labor” Under Guise of Drug Treatment by Derek Gilna by Derek Gilna Following an investigative report by Reveal, a project of the Center for Investigative Reporting, at least four federal lawsuits were filed against Christian Alcoholics and Addicts in Recovery (CAAIR) and Simmons Foods, Inc. in …
Reversed by Supreme Court, Eighth Circuit Remands Prisoner Grooming Case Back to District Court by Christopher Zoukis by Christopher Zoukis Arkansas state prisoner Larry Jones desired to grow a beard, as his religion required. Arkansas prison officials, citing an Arkansas Department of Corrections (ADC) policy disallowing beards, said no. Jones …
Arkansas Court Must Make Findings of Fact to Order Incarceration Costs by The Arkansas Supreme Court remanded for findings of fact an order that allowed the Arkansas Department of Corrections (ADC) to confiscate a prisoner’s lawsuit proceeds as reimbursement for costs associated with incarceration. Dexter J. Harmon, who has been …
Threats by Arkansas Prison Administration Warrants Transfer by David Reutter by David Reutter The Eighth Circuit of Appeals reversed and remanded a federal district court's denial of prisoner James Walker's 42 U.S.C. § 1983 petition seeking his transfer to a federal prison or some other state's prison because he had …
Green v. Arkansas, AR, Appeal, Illegal Sentence, 2017 Cite as 2017 Ark. 361 SUPREME COURT OF ARKANSAS. No. CR-17-167 Opinion Delivered RICKIE GREEN APPELLANT V. STATE OF ARKANSAS APPELLEE December 14, 2017 PRO SE APPEAL FROM THE LONOKE COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT AND MOTION FOR APPOINTMENT OF COUNSEL [NO. 43CR-15-594] HONORABLE …
Fifth Circuit Allows Intervention by Sierra Club in Reverse FOIA Suit by Christopher Zoukis By Christopher Zoukis The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has allowed Sierra Club to intervene in a reverse Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) records request lawsuit. The dispute stemmed from FOIA requests …
Eighth Circuit Refuses to Halt Arkansas Execution of Prisoner Who Claimed Lethal Injection Will Cause Him Extreme Pain by Lonnie Burton by Lonnie Burton In April 2017, the state of Arkansas decided to fast track the execution of eight prisoners before its supply of lethal injection drugs became unavailable. Soon …
Eighth Circuit Denies Stay of Execution to Arkansas Prisoner Who Claimed His Obesity Created Risk of Severe Pain by Lonnie Burton by Lonnie Burton On April 24, 2017, the Eighth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals issued a series of rulings paving the way for the state of Arkansas to continue …
Arkansas Supreme Court: Accident Report Information Not Exempt from FOIA Disclosure by Mark Wilson by Mark Wilson The Arkansas Supreme Court held that the federal Driver's Privacy Protection Act (DPPA) does not prohibit public disclosure of information contained in vehicle accident reports from being released under the Freedom of Information …
