Jury Must Determine Whether Prisoner’s Failure to Exhaust Administrative Remedies was Based on Threats / Retaliation by by David M. Reutter The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has held that when there are material facts in dispute about whether prison officials threatened or intimidated a prisoner into not exhausting administrative …
Illinois Jail Detainee's Death Related Medical Documents Ordered Disclosed by Abdelkadir Belbachir brought federal and state action against McHenry County (Illinois) in 2006 after his cousin, Hassiba Belbachir, died in the county jail. He motioned to compel documents declared exempt under the peer review privilege (privilege) of the State Medical …
Right to Consult, Hire Counsel Well Established and Constitutionally Protected by At 953-54: The right to hire and consult an attorney is protected by the First Amendment's guarantee of freedom of speech, association and petition. ... It has long been recognized that the First Amendment prohibits the state from interfering …
Prison Doctor Lacks Standing to Challenge BOP Policy Denying Medical Care by The plaintiff complained of his treatment for a hernia and his prison doctor complained he was fired pursuant to a policy of providing inadequate care and in violation of his First Amendment rights. Prisoners seeking damages must exhaust …
Dispute Over Bringing Suit Doesn’t Bar Class Certification by At 153: It is not unusual in class actions for some class members to believe that an action should not be brought. A dispute within the class over whether an action should be pursued does not preclude class certification, as long …
Class Action Suits for Damages and Injunctions Discussed by When class plaintiffs seek both equitable relief and money damages, class certification must be done under Rule 23(b)(3), with its individualized notice and opt-out provisions, unless the damages are "incidental" to the equitable relief. (This holding appears to refer to class …
State Consent Decree Valid Despite Governor’s Objection by The state submitted a consent decree to plaintiffs and agreed to several changes; the day before it was to be presented to court, the Assistant AG repudiated it at the direction of the Office of the Governor, which had just learned of …
Illinois Police Misconduct Investigative Documents Ordered Disclosed by Self-proclaimed journalist Jamie Kalven filed a motion to intervene in a 42 U.S.C. § 1983 action for police misconduct which subsequently settled. The motion was granted and production of the investigative documents he sought was ordered. Diane Bond brought an action against …
Shaheed v. USA, IL, Amended Complaint, Muslim Mistreatment, 2008 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS Hakeem Shaheed, ) ) Plaintiff, ) ) vs. ) ) United States of America, Michael K. Nalley, ) Regional Director of the North Central Region of the U.S. Bureau of Prisons, …
Phipps v. Sheriff Cook County, IL, Joint Protective Order, Disabled Prisoners, 2008 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS EASTERN DIVISION Derrick Phipps, et al., ) ) Plaintiffs, ) ) vs. ) ) Sheriff of Cook County and Cook County, ) ) ) Defendants ) …
Phipps v. Sheriff Cook County, IL, Amended Complaint, Disabled Prisoners, 2008 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS EASTERN DIVISION Derrick Phipps, et al., Plaintiffs, -vs- Sheriff of Cook County, and Cook County, Illinois, Defendants. ) ) ) ) No. 07 CV 3889 ) Judge …
Two BOP Guards, One Beaten Prisoner: One Guilty Plea, One Acquittal by Disparate outcomes resulting from charges brought against two federal prison guards accused of assaulting a prisoner reveal the public’s lackluster attitude toward such abuse. The charges stemmed from the Sept. 29, 2004 beating of prisoner John Clark, who …
“Hot Bunking” at Cook County Jail Could Violate Consent Decree by In December 2007, to alleviate the problem of prisoners sleeping on the floor due to chronic overcrowding, Illinois’ Cook County Jail started “hot bunking.” The practice entails prisoners taking turns sleeping in the same bed in shifts. Each prisoner …
$100,000 Settlement in Illinois Jail Guard’s Forced Oral Sex of Female Prisoner by To settle a prisoner’s equal protection claim based upon sexual harassment, Illinois’ Tazewell County has agreed to pay the prisoner $100,000. The same prisoner also had consensual sex with another off-duty guard, resulting in his firing. The …
Maryland State Damages Cap Trumps Federal Awards For 11 Year Old Paraplegic by Davita Carter, an 11 year old resident of Illinois and a Marine veteran's daughter, appealed the damages reduction awarded her in 2000 after surgery left her a paraplegic. The federal court's award was dictated by Maryland State …
Illinois "Occupational License" Clause Exempts Liquor Licensee's Criminal Background From Disclosure by The City of Springfield (Illinois) appealed a 1985 court production order for criminal background information regarding liquor licensee Donald Jackson, Jr., requested under the State's Freedom of Information Act (Act) by The Copley Press, Inc. (Press). The order …
$200,000 Injury Damages For Illinois Juvenile Prisoner Reduced To $40,000 For Total Versus Individual Award Confusion by 15 year old Illinois Youth Center (IYC) prisoner Jeffrey Watts brought federal action against several IYC employees for cruel and unusual punishment in failure to protect after fellow prisoner Derrick Greaves allegedly attacked …
No Liberty Interest in Illinois Segregation by The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal of an Illinois prisoner’s due process and retaliation claims, finding that his allegations “effectively plead him out of court.” Illinois prisoner Christopher Lekas “cultivated a relationship on ‘friendly terms’ with Tyone Murray, a female …
Police Chief Only Responsible If He Knows Danger Of Jail Suicide; Jury Award Vacated by On March 10, 1989, the Appellate Court of Illinois held that a police chief could not be held responsible for a jail suicide even if the chief promulgated a policy of not giving intoxicated arrestees …
Inadequate Medical Care in Chicago Jail Slip and Fall Nets $25,000 by An Illinois prisoner who was injured when he fell on a wet floor was awarded $25,000. Mr. Reed, a 46-year-old prisoner at the Cook County Jail, fell on a wet floor and struck an exposed bolt. He “suffered …
