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High Risk, Low Pay for California Prisoners Who Fight Fires
by Chad Marks
Since the 1940s, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) has maintained a firefighting corps composed of prisoner volunteers. In late 2018, when the Camp and Woolsey fires destroyed the town of Paradise and hundreds of homes in upscale Malibu, over 1,400 prisoners contributed 15 percent ...
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More from this issue:
- News in Brief
- Ninth Circuit Grants Habeas Relief for Ineffective Assistance of Resentencing Counsel, by Matthew Clarke
- One in 55 Adults on Probation or Parole, Study Finds, by Rick Anderson
- Print Media and Prisoner Activism, by Stephen Wilson
- Taser Misuse at California Jail Costs County $1.15 Million, by Derek Gilna
- Baby Dies Days After Prisoner Gives Birth in Isolation Cell at Texas Jail, by Matthew Clarke
- Mississippi: More Indictments from Former DOC Commissioner Epps Corruption Scandal, by Kevin Bliss
- Tennessee: Class-Action Suit Against Private Prison Over Diabetic Care Can Proceed
- Federal Judge Orders Prison Doctor to Face Deliberate Indifference Claims, by Chad Marks
- Florida Prisoner’s Gender Dysphoria Requires Hormone Therapy, Social Transitioning Treatment
- Report Outlines Eight Ways to Shorten Excessive Prison Sentences, by Chad Marks
- $1 Million Settlement in Lawsuit Over Texas Jail Prisoner’s Death, by Matthew Clarke
- Oklahoma is Number One ... in Incarceration Rates, by Matthew Clarke
- $10 Million Award for Wrongly Jailed Philadelphia Man
- Seventh Circuit Denies Wisconsin Prisoner’s Claims Against Medical Staff, by Derek Gilna
- Protesters Rally Against Private Prison Contractor GEO Group, by David M. Reutter
- Hawaii Prison Guards’ Union Fights Policy of Denying Promotions, by Matthew Clarke
- Texas Prison System Cuts Phone Rates Over 75 Percent; Rates Drop in Other States, Too, by Matthew Clarke
- Illinois Calculates the High Costs of Recidivism, by Edward Lyon
- All Seven Arkansas Supreme Court Justices Face Ethics Charges
- Under Pressure, Some Politicians Return Private Prison Campaign Cash, by Steve Horn
- Texas Prison Air Conditioning Costs Much Lower than Expected, by Edward Lyon
- Three Wrongfully Convicted Ohio Prisoners Receive $19.5 Million, by Derek Gilna
- Illinois DOC Settles Lawsuit Filed by Deaf, Hard of Hearing Prisoners, by Derek Gilna
- Seventh Circuit Reverses $6.7 Million Indemnification Award for Milwaukee Jail Rape, by Derek Gilna
- Challenges, Secrecy Continue to Surround Use of Lethal Injection Drugs, by Chad Marks
- Virginia Jail Officials Indicted on Civil Rights Violations
- California: $1 Million Settlement in Suit Over Mentally Ill Jail Prisoner’s Suicide, by Matthew Clarke
- Virginia Jail’s Video Calling System Replaces In-Person Visits, by David Reutter
- Florida DOC Agrees to Reform Prisoner Mental Health Care
- New Trial on Causation Required in Illinois Jail Detainee’s Suicide, by David M. Reutter
- Arkansas Prisoner Prevails on Grievance Exhaustion Issue, by Edward Lyon
- Life-Sentenced Missouri Prisoner Has No Right to Release Date, by Edward Lyon
- Eighth Circuit: Severe Pain Caused by Actual Injury Satisfies PLRA Physical Injury Requirement, by Matthew Clarke
- New York City Pays $280,000 to Settle Suit after Visitor Assaulted by Jail Guards, by Edward Lyon
- $1.6 Million Settlement for Missouri Prison Guard Subjected to Sexual Harassment
- Connecticut DOC Settles Cancer Misdiagnosis Lawsuit for $1.3 Million, by Dale Chappell
- Alaska Supreme Court Denies Counsel to State Prisoner in Felony Case, by Derek Gilna
- High Risk, Low Pay for California Prisoners Who Fight Fires, by Chad Marks
- What the Government Shutdown Looks Like Inside Federal Prisons, by Eli Hager
- PREA Audit at Montana Women’s Prison Amid Sexual Misconduct Complaints, by Matthew Clarke
- Ohio Prisoner Recovers $2,025 for Leg Injury Caused by Guard’s Pepper Ball, by Derek Gilna
- Florida Prisoners Get Tablets, Lose $11.3 Million in Digital Music, by David M. Reutter
- DC Corrections Council Report Slams USP Lewisburg’s “Special Management Unit”, by Derek Gilna
- City of Philadelphia Sinks $5.6 Million into Prison Software Upgrade it Can’t Use, by Kevin W. Bliss
- Imprisoning America’s Mentally Ill, by Edward Lyon
- Obituary: Rick Anderson, 1941-2018, by Paul Wright
- Nevada Prisons Persist in Not Serving Healthy Food, by Edward Lyon
- Sixth Circuit Upholds Denial of Interviews with Lucasville Prison Riot Participants, by Derek Gilna
- Drafting Error in First Step Act Delays Application of Good Behavior Credits, by Steve Horn
- Preliminary Settlement in Class-Action HCV Suit Against Pennsylvania DOC, by Dale Chappell
- HRDC Files Suit Against Southwest Virginia Regional Jail Authority, by Steve Horn
- Seventh Circuit: District Court Abused Discretion in Not Seeking Counsel for Pro Se Prisoner
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Former Prisoners Become Attorneys: From Breaking the Law to Practicing Law, by Christopher Zoukis
More from Chad Marks:
- Use of Solitary Confinement During Pandemic Detrimental To Prisoners and Not Slowing Spread of COVID-19, May 1, 2021
- COVID-19 Inspired Ban on Prison Visits in Texas Ends, April 1, 2021
- Sequel: Three Additional Federal Executions Before Trump Left Office, March 1, 2021
- Connecticut: Summary Judgment Denied in Deliberate Indifference Case Where Facial Lesion Turned Out To Be Skin Cancer, Nov. 1, 2020
- Ford Foundation President’s Support to Replace Rikers With Other Jails Criticized, Oct. 1, 2020
- Wisconsin: Court Dismisses Prisoners’ Suit Over Asbestos, Mold on Procedural Grounds, Sept. 1, 2020
- New Jersey: Commission Recommends State Take 100 Steps to Improve Re-Entry for Ex-Prisoners, Sept. 1, 2020
- New York: Prisoner Kills Himself After Brutal Beating by Guards, Aug. 1, 2020
- Jury Award $700,000 to Maryland Prisoner Assaulted by Guards, Aug. 1, 2020
- Is the Death Penalty Slowly Dying Across the Nation?, June 15, 2020
More from these topics:
- Nearly 800 California Prisoners Battle Huge Los Angeles Wildfires—for About $1 an Hour, Feb. 15, 2025. Prison Labor, Emergency Aid Doctrine, Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
- Fourth Circuit: Baltimore County Prisoners May Qualify as Employees under FLSA, Jan. 15, 2025. Prison Labor, Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
- Washington Prisoners Prep for Firefighting Career After Release, Jan. 15, 2025. Prison Labor, Education, Post-release, ex-offender, re-entry, jobs, Emergency Aid Doctrine.
- California Supreme Court: Jail Detainees Not Entitled to Minimum Wage, or Any Wages, Dec. 15, 2024. Prison Labor, Fair Labor Standards Act.
- Angola Prisoners Granted Limited Relief From “Farm Line” Work, Nov. 15, 2024. Prison Labor, Grounds for Relief, Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
- Rural Areas Increasingly Reliant on Imprisoned Emergency Responders, Oct. 15, 2024. Prison Labor, Fire Hazards, Rural Prisons, Fair Labor Standards Act.
- German High Court Finds Low Prisoner Wages Unconstitutional, Sept. 15, 2024. Prison Labor, Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).
- Missouri Sheriff Removed from Office for Using Detainee Labor on His Own Properties, Sept. 15, 2024. Guard Misconduct, Prison Labor.
- California Prisoner’s Generosity for Gaza Rewarded With Over $100,000, Aug. 15, 2024. Prison Labor, Advocacy.
- Tennessee Sheriff Indicted for Massive Prisoner Work-Release Fraud, Aug. 15, 2024. Police Misconduct, Prison Labor, Police/Govt Misconduct, Fraud and Deceit.