More from this issue:

1. Breaking the Cycle of Understaffing, Lockdowns and Increased Violence in Prisons, by David Reutter
2. From the Editor, by Paul Wright
3. Wexford Faces Liability for Indiana Prisoner’s Delayed Specialist Referral, by David Reutter
4. After Ninth Circuit Refuses to Compel Arbitration, National Class Certified in HRDC’s Challenge to Jail and Prison Debit Card Fees, by Mark Wilson
5. Convicted Sex Offender Now a Licensed Attorney in Washington State
6. Unable to Post Bail, Detainee Starves to Death in Arkansas Jail, by David Reutter
7. $110,000 Paid By Tennessee Jail to Women Allegedly Forced to Stage “Sex Shows” for Guard
8. $1 Million Settlement for California Prisoners Used to Bait Guard Charged with Sexual Misconduct
9. $30,000 Paid by Pennsylvania to Prisoner Who Alleged Guards Beat and Tortured Him, by Douglas Ankney
10. Seventh Circuit Revives Illinois Prisoner’s Claim Over Knee Surgery Delayed 29 Months, by Mark Wilson
11. Louisiana Prison Guard Helps Pregnant Prisoner and Learns That No Good Deed Goes Unpunished
12. Number Held in U.S. Prisons and Jails Dipped in Pandemic’s Second Year, by Douglas Ankney
13. $1.25 Million Settlement for California Jail Prisoner’s Loss of Limbs, by David Reutter
14. 46 Honduran Prisoners Massacred in Their Cells
15. Fourth Circuit Reinstates North Carolina Prisoner’s Suit, Finding Grievance Procedure Availability an Open Question, by Mark Wilson
16. COVID-19 Increased Racial Disparities in Prisons and Jails
17. Court Orders Preliminary Injunctive Relief for Transgender Massachusetts Prisoners, by Douglas Ankney
18. Guantanamo Bay Detainees Subjected to Forced Rectal Feeding and Hydration, by Eike Blohm, MD
19. Wrongly Imprisoned for Killing Oregon Prison Director, Frank Gable Finally Fully Freed
20. Naphcare’s Lack of Care Leads to $26.75 Million Verdict for Washington Jail Death
21. $2,060,000 Awarded to Former New York Prisoner Left Quadriplegic After Assault by Guards, by Douglas Ankney
22. Ex-felons on Parole and Probation Now Allowed to Vote in Minnesota
23. How Corporations Turned Prison Tablets Into a Predatory Scheme, by Derick McCarthy, Ruqaiyah Zarook, Tommaso Bardelli
24. The Almost Unknown Turkey Bowl and Black Sheep, by Douglas Ankney
25. Report Finds Prison a Factor in Falling U.S. Life Expectancy
26. Third Prisoner Dies in 2023 at California’s New Folsom Prison
27. Virginia Prisoner Wins Habeas Release on Ineffective Assistance of Counsel Claim, by Douglas Ankney
28. Settlement Reached Over COVID-19 Measures, Home Confinement Releases at FCC Lompoc
29. New York Jailhouse Lawyer Wins Resentencing, Release, by Benjamin Tschirhart
30. CoreCivic Fails to Defeat California’s Anti-SLAPP Law at Ninth Circuit, Must Pay $45,630 in Attorney Fees
31. Colorado One of Four States Making Phone Calls Free for Prisoners
32. Sixth Circuit Revives Blind Tennessee Prisoner’s Suit Against DOC and CoreCivic
33. $1.85 Million Approved for Tampa Man Wrongfully Imprisoned for 37 Years
34. Suit Against Pennsylvania Jail and Controversial Trainer Down to Just Two Plaintiffs
35. Almost $1.1 Million Awarded to One-Legged Pretrial Detainee Forced to Hop to California Jail Cell, by David Reutter
36. Florida Solitary Confinement Lawsuit Dismissed, by David Reutter
37. Former BOP Guard Gets Light Sentence for COVID-19 Fraud, by Douglas Ankney
38. Academics Find Prisoners Denied Access to Public Information, by Matthew Clarke
39. Citing Improvements at Mississippi State Prison at Parchman, Rappers Drop Suit, by Douglas Ankney
40. Settlement Includes $78,000 in Damages Against Minnesota DOC for ADA Violations
41. 400 Prisoners Relocated After Fire at Texas State Penitentiary
42. Texas Death Row Prisoners Challenge Blanket Policy of Automatic Solitary Confinement, by Douglas Ankney
43. Colorado Lawmakers Shut Down Sheriff’s Participation in ICE 287(g) Program
44. Prisoner Health Update: Hemorrhoids, by Eike Blohm, MD
45. JPay Denied Motion to Compel Arbitration in Suit Over Debit Release Cards
46. Despite Prior Settlement Agreement, Sick Michigan Prisoners Still Forced to Wait for Medication in Cold and Rain, by Douglas Ankney
47. Nearly 5,000 Sexual Victimizations Counted in Three Years in U.S. Prisons and Jails, by Douglas Ankney
48. $3.25 Million Settlement Reached With Defendants Jailed in Missouri “Debtor’s Prison” for Unpaid Fines, Fees, by Matthew Clarke
49. $2.125 Million Paid So Far for Virginia Prisoner’s Death from Treatable Aneurism, by Matthew Clarke
50. San Francisco Jail First in Nation to Provide Detainees Tablets With Totally Free Content
51. Utah Prisoner Blows Whistle on Abuse of Federal Grants, Leading to $1.55 Million Settlement – And New Law Restricting Prisoner Records Requests
52. News in Brief

More from Douglas Ankney:

• Community Supervision: America’s Hidden Wellspring to Mass Incarceration, Feb. 15, 2025
• Rikers Island Continues Long Practice of Denying Education to Young Adults, Feb. 15, 2025
• Monterey County Pays $1 Million to Settle Suit Over Detainee Suicide by Toilet Tissue; Wellpath Pays Another Undisclosed Sum, Feb. 15, 2025
• Sixth Circuit Revives Challenge by Kentucky Prisoner Left Three Weeks in “Rancid” Paper Undershorts, Feb. 15, 2025
• California Court of Appeal: Evidence Insufficient to Show Robbery Victim Moved ‘Substantial Distance’ to Support Simple Kidnapping Conviction and Amendments to § 186.22 Require Vacatur of Gang Enhancements, Feb. 15, 2025
• Fourth Circuit Revives Claims Against Virginia Jailers by Detainee They Allegedly Manhandled While Handcuffed, Feb. 15, 2025
• Fourth Circuit Reinstates North Carolina Prisoner’s Failure-to-Protect Claim Against Guard in Stabbing, Feb. 15, 2025
• Minnesota Supreme Court Announces No Duty to Retreat When Using Reasonable Force in Defense of Another and Provides Framework for Analyzing Such Claims, Feb. 1, 2025
• NIJ Partners With Doctor to Develop Better Screening Method to Detect and Identify Drugs Postmortem, Jan. 15, 2025
• Fines and Fees Destroy the Impoverished and Perpetuate Mass Incarceration, Jan. 15, 2025

More from these topics:

• Third Circuit Grants Habeas Relief to Prisoner on Confrontation Clause and Ineffective Assistance Claims Based on Trial Court Reading Entire Criminal Information Into the Record of Co-Conspirator Who Pleaded Guilty, Feb. 15, 2025. Habeas Corpus, Ineffective Assistance of Counsel, Exculpatory No Doctrine, Confrontation Clause/Rights, Witnesses - Prior Statements/Testimony, Plea Agreements/Guilty Pleas.
• Ninth Circuit: Defense Counsel Ineffective for Failing to Move to Suppress Evidence Obtained as a Result of Police Officer Trespassing on Curtilage of Defendant’s Home, Feb. 1, 2025. Ineffective Assistance of Counsel, Motions To Suppress, Searches - Home/Curtilage, Suppression.
• Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Grants Habeas Relief in ‘Shaken Baby Syndrome’ Case, Feb. 1, 2025. junk science, Habeas Corpus, Forensic Sciences, Child Abuse/Abusers, Evidence - Admissibility.
• Former Tacoma Reentry Center Severs Washington DOC Contract, Jan. 15, 2025. Release and Reentry, housing.
• California Prisoner Awarded Over $1.26 Million in Suit Challenging Withheld Legal Mail Which Resulted in Habeas Loss, Jan. 15, 2025. Settlements, Habeas Corpus, Mail Regulations, Legal Mail.
• Georgia Supreme Court Grants Habeas Relief Where Both Trial and Appellate Counsel Provided Ineffective Assistance by Failing to Challenge Indictment for Residential Burglary That Failed to Allege Defendant Illegally Entered a ‘Dwelling’, Jan. 15, 2025. Habeas Corpus, Ineffective Assistance of Counsel, Constitutional Challenges/Law.
• Ninth Circuit Holds District Courts Have No Authority Under Rule 4 of Rules Governing § 2254 Cases to Dismiss Habeas Petition on the Merits, Dec. 15, 2024. Habeas Corpus, Dismissal, Authority and Jurisdiction.
• Eleventh Circuit Announces Defendant Must Know Leaving Residential Facility Without Permission Is ‘Unlawful’ for Escape Conviction Under 28 U.S.C. § 4082(a), Dec. 15, 2024. Escapes, Release and Reentry, Constructive/Imputed/Presumed knowledge.
• Third Circuit Announces Claim of Innocence Does Not Resolve Whether Defendant Would Have Accepted Plea Offer Absent Counsel’s Error and Holds Counsel Ineffective for Failing to Properly Advise Defendant About Mandatory Sentences If Plea Offer Rejected, Dec. 15, 2024. Actual Innocence/Claim of Innocence, Ineffective Assistance of Counsel, Mandatory Minimum Sentence, Plea Agreements/Guilty Pleas, Rejection.
• Ninth Circuit Grants Habeas Relief to California Prisoner on Napue Claim Because Prosecution Failed to Correct Informant’s False Testimony That He Did Not Receive Any Benefit In Exchange for His Testimony, Dec. 1, 2024. Informants, Habeas Corpus, Informants and Paid Witnesses, False Testimony.