News in Brief by California: In a ruling that highlights the complexities of holding corrupt staff financially accountable, the California Court of Appeal recently restored the pension of former San Francisco jail guard April Myres, 61, on December 26, 2025. Bloomberg Law reported that federal prosecutors charged Myres in 2017 …
Cuyahoga County Receives Over $846,000 Refund from Securus Technologies by In 2016, prison communications profiteer Securus Technologies offered to implement XJail, a jail management system, at the Cuyahoga County Jail in Cleveland, Ohio. Despite the system’s promise to publicly display booking information, charges, bond amounts, and mugshots, Securus never installed …
$404,000 Verdict for Ohio Prisoner Brutalized by Trio of Guards, Kept in Solitary for Two Years by Chuck Sharman by Chuck Sharman On September 12, 2025, a jury in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio returned a verdict awarding $404,000 in damages to state prisoner Tommy …
News in Brief by California: A suit filed in state Superior Court for San Francisco County on December 1, 2025, accuses the New York Post and Los Angeles Times of defaming Nima Momeni, 41, while he was detained in the County’s San Bruno jail before his December 2024 murder trial. …
News in Brief by Alabama: A former Blount County Jail guard received a decade behind bars on October 21, 2025, for a brutal assault that was captured on security video, according to WVTM in Birmingham. Joseph Ray Snow, 45, was sentenced for assaulting detainee Jonathan Calloway in 2022. Calloway, who …
Sixth Circuit Affirms Denial of Qualified Immunity to Jail Nurses in Suit Arising from Prisoner’s Death by Douglas Ankney by Douglas Ankney On June 24, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit affirmed a district court’s denial of qualified immunity to two registered nurses, Diana Snow and …
$7 Million Paid by Ohio County for Jail Detainee’s Death in Restraint Chair by Chuck Sharman by Chuck Sharman The Board of County Commissioners of Ohio’s Montgomery voted on September 30, 2025, to pay $7 million to the Estate of Christian Black, who died at the county jail the previous …
Ohio Sheriff Agrees to Outside Probe in Investigation of Jailed Double Amputee’s Death by Cuyahoga County Sheriff Harold Pretel announced in late October 2025 that he will allow an outside agency to investigate the homicide of Tasha Grant, a 39-year-old double amputee who died in a hospital while being restrained …
Ohio Appoints Special Prosecutor to Investigate Double Amputee’s Restraint and Death by Tasha Grant, a 39-year-old double amputee, was being detained at the Cuyahoga County Jail in Cleveland, Ohio. On May 2, 2025, after 15 days in the jail, Grant—whose legs were amputated years earlier—complained of chest pain and was …
News in Brief by Alabama: A civil rights lawsuit filed in the Northern District of Alabama by Paulette Tennison on August 29, 2025, blamed Morgan County jailers for the death of her son, John Scott Jr., on April 22, 2025, just one week after he was arrested by Priceville Police …
Jail Roster Goes Online for Ohio’s Second-Largest County by Chuck Sharman by Chuck Sharman No more waiting on someone to pick up the phone at Ohio’s Cuyahoga County Jail. As of June 23, 2025, to find out if someone is incarcerated in the Cleveland lockup, you can consult an online …
Estate of Christian Black v. Montgomery County, OH, Settlement, Wrongful Death-Medical Negligence, 2025 - 0 2 -14 -3 ...02, RE OLl ION A HORIZlNG PAYME T BY \\'ARRA IN THE AMOU OF 7t000t000 ( EVEN MILLIO DOLL RS) UPON BEHALF O THE ESTATE OF CHRISTIAN BLACK ACCORDING TO THE, TERl\·IS …
Estate of Christian Black v. NaphCare, Inc, OH, Complaint, Wrongful Death-Medical Negligence, 2025 ELECTRONICALLY FILED COURT OF COMMON PLEAS Wednesday, September 17, 2025 11:05:46 AM CASE NUMBER: 2025 CV 05216 Docket ID: 982359417 Mike Foley CLERK OF COURTS MONTGOMERY COUNTY OHIO IN THE COMMON PLEAS COURT OF MONTGOMERY COUNTY, OHIO …
Sixth Circuit Holds Dismissal Not Automatic When Plaintiff Simultaneously Files Same Claims in State Court by Anthony Accurso The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reversed a district court’s dismissal of a plaintiff’s claim of retaliation, finding the district court misapplied a waiver doctrine that prevented persons from …
Sixth Circuit Upholds $45 Million Verdict for Wrongfully Convicted Former Ohio Prisoner by Chuck Sharman A $45 million wrongful conviction award to an exonerated Ohio prisoner was upheld by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit on May 2, 2025. Miami Township and its Police Department (MTPD) had …
$3,800 Paid to Ohio Prisoner for Denied Records Request by Chuck Sharman In a letter dated July 8, 2024, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost (R) confirmed a $2,800 settlement with state prisoner Trevor J. Teagarden, resolving claims for denied public records requests made to the state Department of Rehabilitation and …
Ohio Sued by Non-Profit Law Firm for Opening Prisoner Legal Mail by On May 6, 2025, the Ohio Justice and Policy Center, a non-profit law firm, filed a lawsuit against the state Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections (DRC) over the practice of intercepting mail between prisoners and their attorneys. The …
Ohio Supreme Court Says Sheriff Must Get and Disclose Records of Private Contractors by Douglas Ankney Under a limited writ of mandamus issued by the Supreme Court of Ohio on October 17, 2024, the Columbiana County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) must obtain records from the private contractor operating the county jail …
News in Brief by Alabama: Elmore County Jail guard Lita Williams, 57, was arrested and charged with first-degree promoting prison contraband on May 21, 2025, the Wetumpka Herald reported. Her arrest followed discovery of a cellphone in a jail cell during a routine search two weeks prior. Data from the …
News in Brief by Alabama: Kadarius Shermaine Todd, 28, a new guard still on probationary status at the Madison County Jail, was fired on April 4, 2025, after allegedly attempting to smuggle contraband into the lockup. He was apprehended upon arrival to meet a contact with a package containing Suboxone, …
