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Civil Commitment Used to Imprison Drug Users in Massachusetts
by Ed Lyon
While most states have laws allowing the involuntary civil commitment (ICC) of the mentally ill, some states extend such laws to addicted drug abusers. Massachusetts is the only state to specify by statute that people whose substance abuse problems “pose a serious risk of harm” can be ...
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More from this issue:
- Ex-Prisoner Awarded $150,000 after 'Savage Beating' Arranged by Guards, by Dale Chappell
- Fourth Circuit Reinstates Prisoner’s Lawsuit Over Denial of Rastafarian Services, by Matthew Clarke
- Wrongfully Convicted North Carolina Man Receives $4 Million
- Florida: DHS Snitch Busted for Trying to Sell Informant Status to Federal Prisoner, by Monte McCoin
- $550,000 Settlement for Georgia Prisoner Who Lost Leg Due to Improper Care
- BOP Director Resigns in Protest of Prison Reform Bill Clash, by Steve Horn
- Texas Prisons Stop Using Solitary Confinement as Punishment, but Thousands Kept in Administrative Segregation, by Matthew Clarke
- Fifth Circuit Holds Denial of Diabetic Diet During Lockdowns States Claim, by Matthew Clarke
- Confidential Settlement by Corizon in Arizona Prisoner’s Death from Untreated Flu
- Settlement Ends Forced Religious Classes in Tennessee Prison Industry Program
- Lawsuit Filed in Death of Kentucky Prisoner Held in Five-point Restraints, by Derek Gilna
- Michigan Jail Wrongful Death Suit Settles for $500,000, by Christopher Zoukis
- Troubles at California Jail Lead Sheriff to Forgo Reelection, by Derek Gilna
- Wisconsin Paid Former Prison Employees $105,000 to Settle Harassment Cases, by Derek Gilna
- Virginia Parole Board Changes “Three-Strikes” Interpretation, by David Reutter
- Nevada DOC Settles Suit Over Prisoner Suicide for $93,000, by Matthew Clarke
- California: Whistle-blowing Prison Employee Fired, Loses Lawsuit, by Edward Lyon
- $9 Million Settlement for Illinois Man Wrongly Imprisoned for Murder, by Matthew Clarke
- ACLU Reaches Confidential Settlement in CIA Detainee Torture Lawsuit, by Derek Gilna
- UK Court Blocks Extradition of Accused Hacker to United States, by Christopher Zoukis
- North Carolina Prisoner Exonerated for Rape Collects $9.5 Million Settlement
- Federal Court Nullifies Seizure of Prisoner’s Civil Rights Award
- “Egregious” Lack of Care by Jail’s Medical Contractor Leads to $1 Million Settlement, by Dale Chappell
- Indiana’s SOMM Program Declared Unconstitutional by Federal Court, by Dale Chappell
- Lawsuit on Behalf of Prisoners in 1993 Lucasville Riot Challenges Ban on Media Access, by Edward Lyon
- New Virginia Law Requires Oversight of Jail Deaths
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- Exonerated Prisoner Awarded $15 Million for Misconduct by Baltimore Police, by Derek Gilna
- Office of Inspector General Finds Abuses at ICE Detention Facilities, by Christopher Zoukis
- Civil Commitment Used to Imprison Drug Users in Massachusetts, by Edward Lyon
- Illinois: $380,000 Settlement in Lawsuit Over Jail Prisoner Assaulted by Other Prisoners, by Matthew Clarke
- Tennessee Judge Ends Sentence Reductions for Prisoners Who Agree to Sterilization; Receives Reprimand, by David Reutter
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More from Edward Lyon:
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- Texas Prisons are Fire Traps, July 15, 2023
- The World’s Biggest Prison, July 15, 2023
- Civilian Police With Military Equipment, June 15, 2023
- U.S. Prisoner Numbers Slowly Declining, June 15, 2023
- California Easing Housing Hurdles for Released Prisoners, June 1, 2023
- Warden Ousted from Troubled Alabama Prison After DUI Arrest, May 1, 2023
- $20,000 Settlement for Ohio Prisoner’s Slip-and-Fall Injury, May 1, 2023
- $32,500 Medical Malpractice Award to Ohio Prisoner for Ripped-Out Catheter, May 1, 2023
- New York State’s Veterans Treatment Courts, April 15, 2023
More from these topics:
- Suboxone Manufacturer’s Delayed-Release Buprenorphine Injections Show Promise at Maine Jail, March 1, 2025. Medication, Drug/Alcohol Withdrawal, Drug Overdose, Drug Treatment/Rehab.
- San Francisco Supervisor Calls for “Mass Arrests” and Compulsory Addiction Treatment in “Drug Jails”, Feb. 15, 2025. Drug Treatment/Rehab, Drug Treatment Records.
- Minnesota’s $100 Million-Per-Year Civil Commitment Program Has No “Discernible Impact” on Sex Crimes, Oct. 15, 2024. Sex Offenders (Discrimination), Databases, Civil Commitment.
- Regional Jail in Kentucky Settles DOJ Complaint, Agrees to Provide Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder, Sept. 15, 2024. Complaints, Drug Treatment/Rehab, Drug Testing/Treatment Programs.
- Minnesota Sex Offender Program: The Indefinite Detention of the Reviled, Aug. 1, 2024. Sex Offender Registration, Civil Commitment, Sex Offender Classification.
- Other Jails Study Miami Diversion Program to Keep Mentally Ill from Repeated Incarceration, June 1, 2024. Alternative Sentencing, Drug Treatment/Rehab, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Involuntary Treatment/Drugging.
- Idaho Continues To Cell “Dangerously Mentally Ill” Without Charges, June 1, 2024. Conditions of Confinement, Totality of Conditions, Lockdowns, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Civil Commitment.
- Seventh Circuit: Heck Bars Civil Rights Challenges to Civil Commitment, June 1, 2024. Civil Commitment, Civil Commitment - Relief from, Heck Rule.
- California Law Extends Involuntary Commitment and Detention to Substance Abusers, May 1, 2024. Drug Treatment/Rehab, Involuntary Treatment/Drugging, Civil Commitment.
- $8.5 Million Settlement After Pretrial Detainee Suffocated by Guards and Medical Staff at Virginia Psychiatric Hospital, April 1, 2024. Guard Misconduct, Medical Misconduct, Excessive Force (Wrongful Death), Civil Commitment.