Broward County, FL Sheriff Resigns, Pleads Guilty to Federal Corruption Charges by David Reutter by David M. Reutter Facing an imminent federal grand jury indictment, Florida?s Broward County Sheriff Ken Jenne took preemptive action by agreeing to plead to lesser charges and resign as Sheriff. PLN has previously reported the …
Florida's Parole Commission Slows Restoration of Felons' Civil Rights by David Reutter by David M. Reutter In April 2007, Florida Gov. Charlie Crist and his Cabinet made it easier for some felons to regain their civil rights, including their right to vote. The new rules automatically restore rights to non-violent …
Killmon v. City of Miami, FL, Mot for Final Part SJ, FTAA Protests 2008 Case 1:04-cv-20707-CMA Document 532 Entered on FLSD Docket 01/31/2008 Page 1 of 21 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA CASE NO. 04-CV-20707 - ALTONAGA/Turnoff KILLMON, et al., Plaintiffs, vs. CITY OF MIAMI, et al., …
Repatriated Federal Prisoner's Sentence Properly Calculated Under American Law by Sonny Odili, a federal prisoner, was sentenced to 100 months in a Panamanian prison after being caught grinding over 7,000 grams of cocaine so it could be smuggled into the U.S. He cooperated with Panamanian authorities in another prosecution but …
Short-Term Injuries Sufficient to Recover Mental and Emotional Damages under PLRA by A Florida federal district court has held that a prisoner's failure to prove long-term physical injuries does not bar a request for damages for long-term mental and emotional injuries. That ruling came in a civil rights action filed …
Foreign Fugitive Awards May Fall Under FSIA’S Commercial Activity Sovereign Immunity Exception by Foreign Fugitive Awards May Fall Under FSIA'S Commercial Activity Sovereign Immunity Exception Jose Guevara filed suit against the Republic of Peru and two Peruvian officials in 2001 for failure to fulfill a contract. The suit was removed …
$195,000 Paid to Family of Slain Florida Prison Guard by David Reutter by David M. Reutter The Florida Department of Corrections (FDOC) has agreed to pay $195,000 to the family of murdered prison guard Darla Kay Lathrem, 38. PLN previously reported the incident. [See: PLN, April 2006, p.42]. Lathrem was …
$25,000 Settlement in Miami False Arrest, Strip Search Suit by While driving in Florida?s Miami-Dade County, a 32-year-old female was pulled over for allegedly following another car too closely. The Miami-Dade County police officer arrested her for an outstanding warrant for driving with an invalid driver?s license. She was arrested …
No Criminal Wrongdoing Found in Overpayments to Florida Private Prisons by David Reutter by David M. Reutter In May 2007 the Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) issued a 22-page report which found that $12.7 million in overpayments to the state's private prison contractors did not result from an intent …
Former Florida Prison Officials Sentenced to Federal Prison by David Reutter by David M. Reutter Former Florida Department of Corrections (FDOC) Secretary James Crosby and his protégé, Allen Clark, have been sentenced to federal prison terms for accepting kickbacks from profits generated from prison visiting park canteens. PLN has previously …
1983 Action Deemed Successive Habeas Petition; Reversed by Supreme Court by The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals held that a 42 U.S.C. § 1983 action, alleging that death by lethal injection causes pain and unnecessary suffering that constitutes cruel and unusual punishment, is the "functional equivalent" of a habeas claim. …
$620,000 Settlement for Florida Jail Beating Death by While imprisoned in Florida's Palm Beach County Jail, a 35 year old Haitian laborer was beaten by guards. He sustained in June 1985, a broken neck and was left in his cell with no medical treatment. When he was finally taken to …
False Arrest Nets Guard and Wife $1.2 Million by A Florida jail guard and his wife, a jail food safety inspector, have been awarded $1,231,700 for their arrest on false charges of smuggling drugs into the jail. On September 11, 2003, Lawrence and Gayle Femminella were arrested on charges of …
Florida’s Private Prison Industry a State Agency Entitled to Sovereign Immunity by Florida's Private Prison Industry a State Agency Entitled to Sovereign Immunity Florida's First District Court of Appeal has held that Florida's private prison industry, Prison Rehabilitative Industries and Diversified Enterprises (PRIDE), is a state agency entitled to sovereign …
$500,000 Paid in Miami Prisoner’s Beating by $500,000 Paid in Miami Prisoner's Beating While detained at Florida?s Dade County Jail, guards beat the 40-year-old detainee in this case in May, 1994. He not a torn rotator cuff a fractured cervical vertebra, and broken ribs. Despite the guard's protestation that they …
Prison Drinking Water and Wastewater Pollution Threaten Environmental Safety Nationwide by John Dannenberg by John E. Dannenberg Aging infrastructure concerns are not limited to America's highways, bridges and dams. Today, crumbling, overcrowded prisons and jails nationwide are bursting at the seams -- literally -- leaking environmentally dangerous effluents not just …
“Please Rip Us Off” Florida Officials Tell Private Prison Companies by David Reutter "Please Rip Us Off" Florida Officials Tell Private Prison Companies by David M. Reutter Despite having ordered a criminal investigation into its private prison contractors, the Florida Legislature and Governor Charlie Crist have enacted legislation that specifies …
Sauve v. Lamberti, FL, Complaint, denial of HIV medication jail, 2008 Case 0:07-cv-61575-WPD Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 11/02/2007 Page 1 of 15 Case 0:07-cv-61575-WPD Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 11/02/2007 Page 2 of 15 Case 0:07-cv-61575-WPD Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 11/02/2007 Page 3 of 15 …
Hardwick v. Lamberti, FL, Complaint, denial of HIV medication jail, 2008 Case 0:07-cv-61296-ASG Document 22 Entered on FLSD Docket 11/01/2007 Page 1 of 12 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA CASE NO. 07-61296-CIV-GOLD/TURNOFF RICHARD HARDWICK, Plaintiff, v. AL LAMBERTI, in his official capacity as Sheriff of Broward County, …
$1.6 Million Settlements by PHS and Hillsborough County in Death of Baby Born in Florida Jail by David Reutter by David M. Reutter Inadequate medical care by Prison Health Services (PHS) has resulted in yet another death and $1.6 million in settlements for the mother of a baby boy who …
