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Pardoned Nevada Bank Robber’s Story Creates Hope for Prisoners
by Casey J. Bastian
In 2004, former FBI agent Richard Beasley first met Jon D. Ponder when he was arresting Ponder for bank robbery. Beasley recalled that Ponder was “angry, scared, frustrated and anxious about his future.” Ponder found himself in a small jail cell in Las Vegas looking at ...
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More from this issue:
- Inside Trump and Barr’s Last-Minute Killing Spree, by Isaac Arnsdorf
- Sequel: Three Additional Federal Executions Before Trump Left Office, by Chad Marks
- Analysis: Federal Executions in Indiana Became ‘Super-Spreader’ Events, by Derek Gilna
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- California Prison System Fined $400,000 For Prisoner Transfers That Sparked Surge in COVID-19, Also Faulted For Easing Restrictions, by Edward Lyon
- COVID Pandemic: Medical Update, by Michael D. Cohen, MD
- Biden to Phase Out Privately-Run Federal Prisons; Critics Say Plan Too Timid, by Kevin Bliss
- Reuters Investigation: Lamentable Medical Care in Jails and Prisons Exposed During Pandemic, by Casey Bastian
- $300,000 Award for Illinois Prisoner in Sexual Assault Claim, by David Reutter
- Second Circuit Upholds New York Prison Guards’ Federal Criminal Convictions for Assaulting Prisoner, by Matthew Clarke
- Last-Minute DOJ Order Clears Way for Possible Return of Home Confinees to Prison, by Derek Gilna
- Centurion Opts Out of Mississippi Prison Medical Contract, by David Reutter
- A Guide To Finding Housing After Incarceration
- New Surge of COVID Is Spreading “Like Wildfire” in Illinois Prisons, by Brian Dolinar
- Arizona Grandmother Sues After Being Jailed and Forced to Drink From Toilet, by Matthew Clarke
- Lawsuit Against Pennsylvania County Over Prisoner’s Death in Restraint Chair Settled for $3 Million, by Matthew Clarke
- Audits Reveals Problems With Privatized Food Service at Pennsylvania’s Allegheny County Jail, by Jayson Hawkins
- Essay: What Spurred the Rise in Mass Solitary Confinement, by David Reutter
- Report: Video Courtroom Proceedings Have Negative Impact on Fairness and Access to Justice, by Matthew Clarke
- No Sentence Reduction for Former Pennsylvania Judge Who Was Caging Kids for Kickback Cash, by Matthew Clarke
- New Mexico Lawyer Fights to End Solitary Confinement, by Daniel A. Rosen
- Federal Court Orders Body Cams Be Worn by Guards in Effort to Stop Abuse of Disabled at California Prison, by Douglas Ankney
- COVID-19 Pandemic Leads to Founding of Congressional BOP Reform Caucus, by Anthony Accurso
- Arizona Supreme Court Overturns Decision Allowing Special Master to Review Recordings of Jail Phone Calls to Attorney Alleged to be Privileged, by Matthew Clarke
- Greedo Still Influencing From Texas Prison, by Jayson Hawkins
- Federal Judge Dismisses Arizona Woman’s Wrongful Conviction Suit, by Daniel A. Rosen
- Victim Compensation and Restorative Justice as Alternatives to Sentencing Enhancements for Hate Crimes, by Douglas Ankney
- Private Medical Contractor Wellpath Pays $4.5 Million in Death of Mentally Ill Jail Detainee After Judge Finds It Destroyed Evidence, by Douglas Ankney
- Nearly Killed by Dehumanizing Culture of Indifference, Oregon Prisoner Sues for $975,000, by Mark Wilson
- Prosecutors Drop Charges Against Florida Prisoner Accused of Assaulting Guard After Video Surfaces, by Kevin Bliss
- ICE Detention Facility Deaths Now Highest Since 2005, by Kevin Bliss
- Pay-to-Stay Fees Impoverish Prisoners, Increase Recidivism, by Kevin Bliss
- Prisoner Art on Display in New York City Exhibition, by Edward Lyon
- Pardoned Nevada Bank Robber’s Story Creates Hope for Prisoners, by Casey Bastian
- CoreCivic Faces Liability for Wiretap Act Violations in Nevada Case, by David Reutter
- Mentally Ill Oregon Prisoner’s “Needless & Preventable” Death From Flu Complications Nets Record $3 Million Settlement, by Mark Wilson
- Sixth Circuit Orders Michigan District Court to Review Prisoner’s Plea for Compassionate Release, by David Reutter
- Mass Incarceration Fueling Spread of COVID-19 in Local Communities, by Keith Sanders
- California Starts Phase-Out of Most State Juvenile Prisons, but Loophole Allows Two to Remain Open, by Douglas Ankney
- Ohio Supreme Court Orders Department of Rehabilitation and Correction to Revise Calculation of Prisoner’s Sentence, by Matthew Clarke
- Nevada Reduces Share of Prisoners’ Money That Can be Taken for Restitution, by Daniel A. Rosen
- California Sheriff Hid Number of Deaths in Sacramento County Jails, by Kevin Bliss
- As Prisoners Die, Washington Officials Resist Reform, by Mark Wilson
- California’s San Quentin and Folsom Prisons Hardest-Hit by COVID-19, by Edward Lyon
- Pennsylvania Supreme Court Rules Prisoners Can Challenge Deductions Taken From Their Accounts, by David Reutter
- Mississippi Department of Corrections Lifts Smoking Ban at its Prisons, by Keith Sanders
- Second Circuit Court of Appeals Partly Overturns New York District Court, Allows Prisoner’s PREA Violations Claims to Proceed, by David Reutter
- Minnesota Counties Pay Out More Than $10 Million For Prison and Jail Settlements, by Kevin Bliss
- Data: Families of Arizona Prison Guards Suffer High Rates of Domestic Violence, by Edward Lyon
- Federal Court Finds Missouri Parole System Unconstitutional, by Dale Chappell
- New Allegations of Abuse and Sexual Assault at Edna Mahan Women’s Prison in New Jersey, by Kevin Bliss
- Successive Corruption Scandal Rocks Mississippi Prison System, by Edward Lyon
- News in Brief
More from Casey Bastian:
- Examining Pro-Prosecution Bias in the Judiciary: Unconscious Biases of a Prosecutorial Background, Feb. 15, 2025
- The Rise of Mass Supervision: From Rehabilitative Alternative to Shadow Carceral State, Oct. 1, 2024
- Demonstrable Remorse, Psychiatric Diagnoses, and Alternatives to Incarceration, Aug. 1, 2024
- Minnesota Sex Offender Program: The Indefinite Detention of the Reviled, Aug. 1, 2024
- The 153 Exonerations in 2023 Include 19 Resulting From Threats or Sentences of Death, July 15, 2024
- Four Dead in One Month in San Bernardino County Jails, $3,232,500 in Settlements Paid So Far, March 1, 2024
- Dangerous Encounters: Interactions Between Autistic Individuals and Law Enforcement, Dec. 15, 2023
- U.S. Sentencing Commission Publishes Compassionate Release Datafile for Fiscal Years 2020-2022, Oct. 1, 2023
- Two Dead and $4.675 Million Paid After Deputies’ Alleged Misconduct in California’s Sonoma County, Sept. 15, 2023
- Collaborative Project Between Innocence Project and National Registry of Exonerations Produces Interim Report Reconciling Data Coding Discrepancies, Sept. 1, 2023
More from these topics:
- Long Wait List for Texas’ Only College-Level Re-Entry Class for Prisoners, Feb. 15, 2025. Education, Post-release, ex-offender, re-entry, jobs.
- California Governor Pardons Former Prisoner Podcaster of “Ear Hustle”, Feb. 15, 2025. Pardons/Clemency, Prisoner Media.
- BOP Prisoners in Alabama Strike to Protest Release Date Confusion, Jan. 15, 2025. Prison Rebellion, Post-release, ex-offender, re-entry, Bureau of Prisons (BOP), Credits.
- Washington Prisoners Prep for Firefighting Career After Release, Jan. 15, 2025. Prison Labor, Education, Post-release, ex-offender, re-entry, jobs, Emergency Aid Doctrine.
- Kentucky’s Failure to Timely Release Prisoners Costs Taxpayers $30 Million (So Far), Dec. 15, 2024. Cost of Prison Systems, Overdetention, Post-release, ex-offender, re-entry.
- New York Court of Appeals (Lightly) Slaps State Prison Officials for Holding Sex Offenders Past Release, Dec. 15, 2024. Jail Misconduct, Overdetention, Post-release, ex-offender, re-entry.
- Federal Prisoner Will Appear on Alaska Congressional Ballot, Oct. 15, 2024. Post-release, ex-offender, re-entry.
- Oklahoma Lawmakers Sue for Pardon and Parole Board Texts After Condemned Prisoner Denied Clemency, Sept. 15, 2024. Parole Board Misconduct, Pardons/Clemency, Text Messages.
- Maryland Governor Pardons Thousands of Low-Level Marijuana Convictions, Seeking to Right Historical Wrongs, Sept. 1, 2024. Pardons/Clemency, Marijuana Laws/Issues, Use of Marijuana.
- Colorado Lawmakers Take a Pass on Cash Assistance for Released Prisoners, Aug. 15, 2024. Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Post-release, ex-offender, re-entry.