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Official Capacity Not the Same as Governmental Agency in Texas Civil Suit
by Matt Clarke
On June 24, 2010, a Texas Court of Appeals held that suing employees of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) in both their official and individual capacities was not the same as suing both the governmental entity and the employees, and thus the employees did not …
On June 24, 2010, a Texas Court of Appeals held that suing employees of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) in both their official and individual capacities was not the same as suing both the governmental entity and the employees, and thus the employees did not …
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More from this issue:
- Remembering Attica Forty Years Later, by Dennis Cunningham
- Extra Earned Time Sentence Reductions Save Oregon $25 Million
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- 800,000 Ex-Offenders Regain Voting Rights – 5.3 Million More to Go
- Female Prisoners Removed from CCA Facility in Kentucky
- PLN Files Censorship Suit Against Michigan Jail over “Postcard Only” Policy
- Reform Comes to Maine Supermax: New commissioner cuts population by more than half; prisoner rights advocates help in the reform, by Lance Tapley
- $73,700 Jury Award for Guard’s Sexual Encounters with Massachusetts Prisoner, by David Reutter
- New Mexico Spends $20 Million in Federal Stimulus Money to Fund Prison Jobs
- Sixth Circuit Upholds Tennessee’s Financial Obligation Re-Enfranchisement Law, by Mark Wilson
- Ninth Circuit Finds Maricopa County Jail’s Cross-Gender Strip Searches Unreasonable
- $60 Million in Strip Search Settlements for Cook County Jail Prisoners, by Derek Gilna
- California: OAL Disapproves Proposed Parole Board Regulation Formalizing Lifer Risk Assessments, by Michael Brodheim
- Feds Pay Wrongfully Convicted D.C. Men $1.9 Million
- Florida Reenacts Reconstruction-Era Felon Disenfranchisement Rule, by David Reutter
- EEOC Files Suit Against GEO Group for Sexual Harassment at Arizona Prisons
- Georgia Deputy Fired for Refusing Threesome with Sheriff
- Feds Intervene in Suit, Allege “Sadistic” Stun Gun Use at Ohio Jail; Jail Settles, by Brandon Sample
- Federal Court Dismisses Virginia Lifers’ Parole Suit
- New Laws Improve Job Prospects for Former Prisoners
- Florida Prisoner’s Suicide Suit Settles for $500,000
- $85,000 Settlement in Philadelphia Wrongful Imprisonment Suit
- Former Federal Prisoner Seeks Almost $280,000 in Attorney Fees from BOP
- Prisoners Used to Clean Foreclosed Houses in Georgia
- Third Circuit Upholds Unanimity Requirement for Pennsylvania Pardon Recommendations
- Texas Chaplain Who Complained of Jail Conditions Reinstated, Suit Settled
- Protective Order Denied in Privately Run Florida Juvenile Facility Class-Action Suit, by David Reutter
- $4.5 Million Settlement in Texas County Jail Strip Search Suit
- Florida’s House Speaker Wants to Quicken Executions, by David Reutter
- Third Circuit Upholds Pennsylvania Sex Offender Treatment Parole Requirement, by Mark Wilson
- Michigan Prisoner’s Failure to Protect Case Settles for $100,000
- Florida Courts Criticize Indefinite Detention While Awaiting Civil Commitment Trials
- North Carolina Prisoner’s First-Degree Murder Conviction is Valid Basis to Deny Awarding Good Time Credits, by David Reutter
- Parole Violator Leaps to Death at Alaskan Jail
- North Carolina Jail Prisoner Housed with TB Infected Cellmate Receives $2,250 Settlement
- New Mexico State Auditor Investigates Prison Contracts
- Washington State Closes McNeil Island Prison, by David Reutter
- Canadian Prison Guards Hold Prisoners at Gunpoint for 10 Days
- Smoke ’Em if You Got ’Em, Says Oklahoma DOC
- California: Orange County Jail System Ordered to Remedy ADA Violations, by Michael Brodheim
- Oregon Settles Prisoner’s Heart Failure Medical Mistreatment Case for $390,000, by Mark Wilson
- Arizona County to Pay Ex-Prisoner $325,000 in Jail Guard Beating
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- UNICOR Wins $20 Million No-Bid Body Armor Contract
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- Paperwork SNAFU Leaves Mentally Ill Woman Jailed in Louisiana for Eight Months
- California State Auditor Reports on CDCR Malfeasance
- Official Capacity Not the Same as Governmental Agency in Texas Civil Suit, by Matthew Clarke
- News In Brief
More from Matthew Clarke:
- Dissenter Excoriates SCOTUS for Denying Certiorari in Challenge to Constitutionality of Nitrogen Hypoxia Execution, Feb. 1, 2026
- D.C. Federal Court Holds Blocking Prison Reform Advocate’s Access to Federal Prisoners May Violate First Amendment and Due Process, Feb. 1, 2026
- Eleventh Circuit Holds Estate Cannot Sue Jailers Who Followed Medical Personnel Advice That Led to Detainee’s Death, Feb. 1, 2026
- Sixth Circuit Reinstates Lawsuit Over Failure to Properly Classify Violent Prisoners at Kentucky Jail, Feb. 1, 2026
- Eleventh Circuit Holds Alabama County May Be Liable for Policy of Providing Inadequate Jail Medical Care, Feb. 1, 2026
- Tenth Circuit Reverses Summary Dismissal of Claim Over Prisoner’s Suicide in Oklahoma Jail, Feb. 1, 2026
- Deportation of Kenyan Priest Working as Texas Prison Guard Highlights TDCJ’s Dependence on Immigrant Staff, Feb. 1, 2026
- Ninth Circuit Reinstates Wheelchair-Bound Washington State Prisoner’s Suit Over Failure to Accommodate Disabilities During Transport, Feb. 1, 2026
- Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Announces Adoption of Transferred Intent Self-Defense, Jan. 1, 2026
- Eleventh Circuit Upholds Dismissal of Six Female Alabama Jail Detainees’ Sexual Assault Suit, Jan. 1, 2026
More from these topics:
- $450,000 Paid for Michigan Jail Detainee’s Fentanyl Death, Incarcerated Husband Prevails in Claim for Part of Payout, Feb. 1, 2026. Drug Overdose, Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Deliberate Indifference.
- Fifth Circuit Rules Against Louisiana Prisoner Seeking to Recoup Money Made at Angola Prison Rodeo, Jan. 1, 2026. Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Trust Accounts, Qualified Immunity, Fourteenth Amendment, rights, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights.
- HRDC’s Washington Jail Debit-Release Card Suit Survives Summary Judgment, Nov. 1, 2025. Summary Judgment, Class Certification, Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Official Report, HRDC Litigation.
- Special Digital Currencies Issue: Bitcoin and CBDCs What Is Bitcoin? The Answer to Government Surveillance and Control Through Money An Essential Introduction, Glossary of Multidisciplinary Terminology, and Colorful History, Aug. 15, 2025. Money/Property, Police State-Surveillance, Electronic Surveillance, Money Laundering/Structuring.
- From the Editor, Aug. 15, 2025. Money/Property, Police State-Surveillance, Electronic Surveillance, Money Laundering/Structuring.
- Central Bank Digital Currencies: Trojan Horses Delivering Mass Surveillance Under the Guise of Monetary Innovation, Aug. 15, 2025. Money/Property, Police State-Surveillance, Electronic Surveillance, Money Laundering/Structuring.
- Review: “Reforming the Shadow Carceral State”, Aug. 1, 2025. Reviews, Criminal justice system reform, Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Fines.
- $815,000 Settlement in Nevada Class-Action Suit Over Debit Release Cards, Aug. 1, 2025. Money/Property, Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Trust Accounts.
- $2.8 Million Settlement in National NUMI Debit Release Card Class Action, June 1, 2025. Release and Reentry, Money/Property, Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Prisoner Property, Trust Accounts.
- Wellpath Prepares Plan to Exit Bankruptcy, May 1, 2025. Private Contractors, Seizure of Prisoner Funds.

