Michigan: Private Prison More Costly than State-Run Prison, Attracts Out-of-State Contracts
by David Reutter
The GEO Group, one of the nation’s largest for-profit prison companies, has signed contracts with Vermont and Washington State to house prisoners at a GEO prison in Michigan, after a review by Michigan officials determined it ...
Privatized Prisoner Transportation Service Poses Problems
by David M. Reutter
Several lawsuits against the self-proclaimed “nation’s largest prisoner extradition company and one of the largest international transporters of detainees” have cast a harsh light on a contractor hired to fulfill the traditional government role of transporting prisoners from place to ...
Michigan: Former Prisoners Must Repay Lawsuit Cash Advance Company
by David Reutter
The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld a district court’s ruling that required eight former prisoners to repay a company that purchased a contingent portion of their lawsuit settlement.
The appellate decision affirmed the judgment of a ...
Lawsuit Challenges Dental Care in Michigan Prisons
by David Reutter
A lawsuit alleging the Michigan Department of Corrections (MDOC) fails to provide prisoners with adequate and constitutional dental care was filed in federal court in April 2014.
“How do you eat with one tooth?” asked Daniel E. Manville, director of ...
Second Federal Lawsuit Filed Over Abuses at Pennsylvania County Prison
by David Reutter
A second federal lawsuit has been filed by a former prisoner at Pennsylvania’s York County Prison, alleging that his civil rights were violated by a pattern of abuse by guards that included forcing prisoners to fight each ...
Racial Discrimination Costs Michigan DOC Over $1 Million
by David Reutter
Last year, the Michigan Department of Corrections (MDOC) paid more than $1 million in damages in two lawsuits that accused the department of failing to take action despite having knowledge of blatant racism by an MDOC supervisor.
Faced with ...
Miami-Dade Sex Offender Residency Ordinance Unsuccessfully Challenged
by David M. Reutter
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) recently challenged the constitutionality of a Miami-Dade County, Florida ordinance that, according to the organization, forces sex offenders on probation into homelessness by imposing residency restrictions so harsh there is literally no place ...
$350,000 Settlement in Pennsylvania Prisoner’s Suicide
by David Reutter
A $350,000 settlement was reportedly reached in the 2007 suicide of a prisoner at Pennsylvania’s Blair County Prison (BCP). The settlement included the prisoner’s personal physician as well as county defendants.
Following an injury to his right leg in 2002, Nathan ...
$130,000 Awarded to New York Prisoner Injured From Top Bunk Fall
by David Reutter
A New York Court of Claims has awarded $130,000 to a prisoner who was injured after negligently being assigned a top bunk against medical directions.
Prisoner, Jon Sumpter, fell about six feet on November 17, 2003, ...
Agreement Ends Discrimination of HIV-Positive Prisoners in South Carolina
by David M. Reutter
An agreement between the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the South Carolina Department of Corrections (SCDC) makes it the last state prison system to end discrimination against HIV-positive prisoners.
SCDC implemented policies in the late 1990s that segregated about 350 male and female prisoners in its highest security prisons without regard for their individual security classification. Male prisoners were housed at the Broad River Correctional Institution and the Camille Griffin Graham Correctional Institution housed women.
HIV-positive prisoners were required to wear clothing and badges that identified their dorms, which were “HIV-only” dorms. In effect, SCDC’s policies disclosed to staff, other prisoners, and visitors the prisoners’ HIV status. Because certain programs are not available at those two prisons, SCDC’s policies prevented affected prisoners from participating in drug treatment, work release, pre-release preparation, and intermediate psychiatric care. They were also denied cafeteria and canteen jobs.
The October 1, 2013 agreement between DOJ and SCDC ends the “illegal segregation” of HIV-positive prisoners throughout the nation. It came close on the heels of the Alabama prisoner system’s abrogation of similar policies following a federal court’s ruling. See: PLN August, 2013, ...
