BOP Exceeds Statutory Authority in Denying Sentence Reduction by Afederal district court in the District of Columbia held that the Bureau of Prisons (BOP) had exceeded its statutory authority by defining "violent" offenses to preclude a sentence reduction for convictions the courts have consistently defined as "non-violent." In 1994 congress …
Lott v. WA DOC, WA, Tort Settlement and Release, Phallam Bay Accident, 1998 • Claim # 31031273-01 RELEASE (TORT) I},I/( FOR AND IN CONSIDERATION of the sum of, One Thousand Sixty Three Dollars and 49/Cents 51,063.49, inclusive of all liens known and unknown), Alvina Lott, Ilis/her heirs. assigns, or other …
Ohio Students Rally in DC by Students from Dayton Ohio's Colonel White High School were outraged when they read about Kemba Smith in Emerge magazine. Smith, a 24-year-old Virginia woman, was sentenced to 24 years in federal prison without the possibility of parole for refusing to cooperate with federal prosecutors …
Spanish Speaking Prisoners Entitled to Interpreters by In a wide ranging and extensive ruling a federal court in the District of Columbia held that by failing to provide interpreters to non English speaking Hispanic prisoners the DOC violated the plaintiffs' eighth and fourteenth amendment rights. As the first published ruling …
Tales from the Washington IMU Crypt by M L Reader Mail In case you'd like to report on recent events at Shelton [in one of Washington state's three "IMU" Control Units] here are the basics. In the first week of September [1997] a female guard told guys on F-tier to …
BOP Porn Ban Held Unconstitutional by In the March, 1997, issue of PLN we reported the September 30, 1996, enactment of the "Ensign Amendment," named after its author Nevada congressman John Ensign (R). The law was enacted as a rider to the federal government's massive budget bill. No hearings or …
Washington Porn Ban Challenged by Playboy Suit Not Frivolous: In an unpublished ruling the court of appeals for the ninth circuit held that a federal court in Spokane, Washington, erred when it dismissed as frivolous a lawsuit by prisoner Mark LaRue challenging the censorship of his subscription to Playboy . …
Reaching the Breaking Point by M L A guy was mad over having his letter rejected because his girlfriend said something [in the letter] about sex. He was also tired of being lied to about getting out of IMU [Intensive Management Unit, Washington state's version of a 23/7 Control Unit]. …
WSP Mail Rules Upheld by Joseph Allen filed suit challenging various aspects of the mail policy at the Washington State Penitentiary. After filing suit Allen did no discovery and when the defendants moved for summary judgment he did not bother responding. Not surprisingly, the court ruled against Allen. Surprisingly, the …
Deaf Prisoners in Washington Seek Class-Wide Relief by David C Fathi by David C. Fathi, Jeff B. Crollard and Leonard J. Feldman Lawyers representing two deaf prisoners in a lawsuit against the Washington Department of Corrections (WDOC) are seeking to broaden the suit into a class action on behalf of …
Washington "Bulk Mail" Ban of PLN Struck Down by Since PLN began publishing in 1990 it has experienced sporadic attempts at censorship by the Washington DOC. This has ranged from a statewide ban of the first three issues to harassment of the editors. Unable to articulate a threat to "legitimate …
WSP Ban on Gift Subscriptions Enjoined by In two separate, unpublished rulings, different federal magistrates in Spokane, Washington, held that a Washington State Penitentiary policy requiring that prisoners purchase all magazine subscriptions and books from their prison trust accounts was unconstitutional. Both courts enjoined the policy. WSP Policy 450.100 states …
$135,000 Award in Beating Affirmed, Municipal Liability Reversed by The court of appeals for the District of Columbia circuit affirmed the award of $135,000 in damages to a prisoner beaten by prison guards, but it reversed an attorney fee award premised upon municipal liability. Robert Triplett, a D.C. prisoner, had …
Washington 35% Law Struck Down, in Part by PLN has reported extensively on Wright v. Riveland , the class action lawsuit challenging Washington state statute RCW 72.09.480 [ PLN , Jun. Aug. Dec. 1996; May, 1997]. The law allows the DOC to seize 35% of all money sent to prisoners, …
Sparr v. WA DOC, WA, Complaint, Walla Walla Double Amputee, 1998 -, -rn.t~ . I~ECEIVED ==: [ ~Ji.AIL ] MAR 191998 . JAN 15 1998 .mORNEY GENERAL'S OFFler C(,')R~CT!CtlS DlV AT S~rnE ""'"ClE.~ U.S. DlS1Iltcr C4'URT iJyQrtRII DISTRICT OF ~0tI 0£My UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON TraviS …
Cruz v. WA DOC, WA, Complaint for Damages, McNeil Island Bus Accident, 1997 "'. '. F I LED IN COUNTY CLERK'S OFFiCE: 3 REr r= , ~:'}a.: r)NO V 2 4 1997 '97 DEC 22 PPl 1 31 ?M. .• . .. PIERc:i: COUNTY. WASHINGiON . ~7 5 •• ~ …
D.C. Prisoners Win No Smoking Injunction by In the May, 1996, issue of PLN we reported Crowder v. Kelly, 928 F. Supp. 2 (D DC 1996) where the district court granted a preliminary injunction ordering District of Columbia prison officials to place the prisoner plaintiffs in non smoking living quarters …
DC DOC Official Convicted of Contempt by The court of appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit affirmed the criminal contempt conviction of District of Columbia official Sylvia Young. Young was convicted after she harassed and retaliated against women DOC employees who had filed suit claiming that sexual harassment and …
Washington Sex Offender Notification Enjoined by The federal district court for the western district of Washington has issued a preliminary injunction enjoining the state from retroactively applying the provision of Washington's Community Protection Act of 1990 calling for the "community notification" of recently released sex offenders. The plaintiff, identified only …
Supreme Court Rulings Trickle Down: WA Good Time by In the February, 1996, issue of PLN we reported Gotcher v. Wood, 66 F.3d 1097 (9th Cir. 1995) where the ninth circuit held that Washington prisoners have a protected liberty interest in their good time credits. The supreme court vacated Gotcher …
