Report: Tennessee Prison Population Climbs, Bucks Nationwide Trend by David Reutter by David M. Reutter Incarceration is not the answer to crime, concludes a December 19, 2019 report by the Tennessee Criminal Justice Investment Task Force (CJITF). “Despite incarcerating more people and spending over $1 billion annually on corrections in …
Sixth Circuit Upholds Summary Judgment Against 14-Year-Old Mentally Ill Pretrial Detainee, Raped by Guard in Solitary by Mark Wilson by David Wilson The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a 14-year-old Tennessee detainee’s solitary confinement, mental health care and sexual abuse claims. J.H. …
News in Brief by California: On March 28, 2020, death row prisoner Lonnie Franklin Jr., 67, aka “Grim Sleeper,” was found unresponsive in his San Quentin cell. California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation spokeswoman Terry Thornton told reporters, “There were no signs of trauma. They don’t know why he died.” …
Prison Postcards: Prisoners Write About Fears, Incompetence, at Their Facilities by Ken Silverstein by Ken Silverstein On April 15, President Donald Trump announced that the coronavirus pandemic had peaked in the United States. That same day, nearly 2,300 people in the country died from COVID-19, the disease cause by the …
Another Prisoner Dies at Tennessee Prison Run By CoreCivic by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke The September 14, 2019, death of prisoner Albert Dorsey, 60, at the Hardeman County Correctional Facility (HCCF), a private prison operated by Tennessee-based CoreCivic, was initially called a suicide by the medical examiner. The prison’s …
The Marshall Project v. Memphis Shelby Crime Commission, Stipulation, Settlement Agreement, 2020 IN THE CHANCERY COURT OF SHELBY COUNTY, TENNESSEE THE MARSHALL PROJECT and WENDI THOMAS, Petitioners, v. No. CH-19-0165 MEMPHIS SHELBY CRIME COMMISSION Respondent. STIPULATION OF DISMISSAL WITHOUT PREJUDICE IT IS HEREBY STIPULATED AND AGREED by and between counsel …
CoreCivic Booted from LGBT Chamber of Commerce in Hometown by David M. Reutter by David M. Reutter Nashville’s LGBT Chamber of Commerce (Chamber) has removed for-profit prison company CoreCivic from its membership rolls. The October 8, 2019 decision to return the company’s membership fee came after a vocal outcry from …
HRDC v. Marshall County, TN, Settlement, Publications, 2020 SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT AND RELEASE This Settlement Agreement and Release ("the Agreement") is entered in effect as of November 20, 2019, by and between Human Rights Defense Center and Marshall County, Tennessee. WHEREAS, all claims have been presented or otherwise could have been …
First Major Loss in Recent Challenges to Hep C Treatment for Prisoners by David M. Reutter by David M. Reutter The Tennessee Department of Correction’s (TDOC) chronic Hepatitis C (HCV) treatment policies “are not perfect,” a federal district court found, but they do not violate the Eighth Amendment rights of …
Tennessee Prisoner Captured After Killing Prison Employee, Escaping by David M. Reutter by David M. Reutter After five days of searching, authorities apprehended escaped Tennessee prisoner Curtis Ray Watson. He was then sent to the Riverbend Maximum Security Institution in Nashville. Watson was serving a 15-year sentence for especially aggravated …
Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury Performance Audit Report, Department of Correction, TN, 2020 Department of Correction January 2020 DEBORAH V. LOVELESS, CPA, CGFM, CGMA Director State Agency Audits KANDI B. THOMAS, CPA, CGFM, CFE, CGMA Assistant Director Information Systems DANIEL V. WILLIS, CPA, CISA, CGFM Assistant Director JENNIFER WHITSEL, CPA, …
G.H., a minor, through Henry, et al. v. Marstiller, TN, order, children in solitary confinement, 2019 Case 4:19-cv-00431-MW-MJF Document 22 Filed 12/06/19 Page 1 of 21 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF FLORIDA TALLAHASSEE DIVISION G.H., a minor, by and through his parent and legal guardian, Gregory …
Tennessee Criminal Justice Investment Task Force review, 2019 Criminal Justice Investment Task Force Acknowledgements While the work of a number of subcommittees of the Tennessee Criminal Justice Investment Task Force is ongoing and not reflected within this report, the Task Force would like to thank the following agencies, associations, and …
Letter to Nashville LGBT Chamber of Commerce re CoreCivic membership, October 2019 Human Rights Defense Center DEDICATED TO PROTECTING HUMAN RIGHTS October 4, 2019 Nashville LGBT Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors 41 Peabody Street Nashville, TN 37210 Re: CoreCivic’s Chamber membership Dear Board members: On September 13, Out & …
Adams v. Baker, TN, Trial Opinion, Retaliation, 2019 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE AT CHATTANOOGA CHRISTOPHER ADAMS, Plaintiff, v. DAVE BAKER, Defendant. ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) Case No. 1:16-cv-335 Judge Travis R. McDonough Magistrate Judge Susan K. Lee TRIAL OPINION Plaintiff Christopher …
Tennessee Adopts Alternative Sentencing for Primary Caregivers of Minor Children by Edward Lyon by Ed Lyon Study after study has shown that children of incarcerated parents often suffer, sometimes catastrophically. Children with an incarcerated parent have higher incarceration rates as adults themselves than children who never had a parent behind …
Tennessee Prisoners File Lawsuit Challenging Video Visitation Policy at County Jail by Chad Marks by Chad Marks In April 2014, then-Sheriff James “J.J.” Jones implemented a video visitation system at the Knox County, Tennessee jail through a contract with Securus Technologies. The video system coincided with the elimination of in-person …
Tennessee Jail Sexual Assault Lawsuit can Proceed, Federal Court Rules by David M. Reutter by David M. Reutter A Tennessee federal district court has held the Hamblen County Sheriff’s Department and Sheriff Esco Jarnagin can be held liable for the sexual assault of a pretrial detainee. The ruling was based …
CoreCivic Prisons in Tennessee Have Twice as Many Murders, Four Times the Homicide Rate as State-Run Facilities by On June 10, 2019, the Human Rights Defense Center and No Exceptions Prison Collective reported that from 2014 through June 2019, there were twice as many murders in the four Tennessee prisons …
HRDC v. Marshall County, TN, Stipulated Preliminary Injunction, Publications, 2019 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE MIDDLE DISTRICT OF TENNESSEE COLUMBIA DIVISION HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENSE CENTER Plaintiff, v. MARSHALL COUNTY, TENNESSEE, BILLY LAMB, Sheriff of Marshall County Tennessee, in his official and individual capacities; SABRINA PATTERSON, Jail Administrator, …
