by David M. Reutter
The Wisconsin Department of Corrections paid $105,000 to settle a prisoner’s excessive use of force lawsuit. The December 2, 2020, settlements resolves the suit brought by prisoner Kuan Barnett.
Barnett’s civil rights action stemmed from events that occurred at Columbia Correctional Institution. While locked in his ...
by David M. Reutter
In reversing a district court’s judgment, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals ordered that a deaf prisoner be allowed “access to point-to-point videophone calls because the evidence at trial established that the detainee [otherwise] lacked any ability to communicate with the Deaf.”
The Fourth Circuit held ...
by David M. Reutter
An Illinois federal district court awarded $300,000 to a prisoner who alleged a female food supervisor coerced him into sexual activity.
The court’s September 29, 2020, order was issued following a damages bench trial. The lawsuit was filed by Illinois prisoner Donald Quickle. He was represented ...
by David M. Reutter
Citing Mississippi’s refusal to invest in prison facilities and staff, private medical vendor Centurion pulled out of its contract with the Mississippi Department of Corrections (MDOC) to provide medical and mental health care to prisoners. The move was hailed as a “significant victory” by Team Roc. ...
by David M. Reutter
Mass solitary confinement in the United States did not develop as a response to violent predators, “but rather as a means for officials to achieve control of political activists and ‘troublemakers’ amongst prisoners.” That conclusion is drawn in an essay by Jules Lobel, the Bessie McKee ...
by David M. Reutter
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held that each interception of an attorney’s privileged telephone is a violation of the federal and Nevada Wiretap Acts. As such, the statute of limitations is triggered anew for each intercepted call.
The court’s October 27, 2020, opinion was issued ...
by David M. Reutter
The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals ordered a Michigan federal district court to determine if a prisoner showed excusable neglect in filing an appellate notice outside time limitations. The prisoner alleged he couldn’t get needed copies made because his prison was on lockdown.
The court’s October ...
by David M. Reutter
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court held that prisoners who had deductions taken from their inmate account under Act 84 are entitled to a post-deprivation process.
The court’s October 1, 2020, opinion was issued in an appeal brought by prisoner Aquil Johnson, who sought a refund of monies ...
by David M. Reutter
The Second Circuit Court of Appeals held that a prisoner exhausted administrative remedies when he followed the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS) Inmate Grievance Procedure, but the Central Office Review Committee (CORC) failed to respond within the 30 days it is ...
by David M. Reutter
In a ruling August 3, 2020, the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals encouraged a lower court to extend its supervision over a settlement agreement in a class-action lawsuit brought in 2009 against the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) by prisoners placed in solitary ...
