On January 5, 2005, a settlement was reached in a complaint filed pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against Sacramento County and various County law enforcement officials alleging Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment civil rights violations, as well as penal and civil code violations. The complaint was filed by attorneys Mark E. Merin and Jeffrey I. Schwarzchild on behalf of Catherine Avery following her wrongful arrest and detention on October 22, 2003.
Avery was arrested, booked, and subjected to a visual body cavity strip-search despite her protestations of not being the woman named or described in the arrest warrant. Sheriff's deputies and jail staff consistently ignored the obvious physical differences between Avery and the woman described in the warrant, Cathy Gilbert. Avery's §1983 claim sought damages for the alleged civil rights and state law violations and her emotional distress. Attorney's fees and costs were included in the $11,250 settlement. See: Avery v. Sacramento County, et al, Sacramento County Super. Ct., #01AS01732 (2005).
A Florida jury awarded a man $10,000 for being falsely arrested on a child molestation charge. Following the verdict, the trial court awarded the man an additional $100,000.
The plaintiff lived next to a 5-year-old girl. In 2005, the girl was playing with the plaintiff’s daughters. The child said the …
Washington’s King County paid $5,500 to settle a claim that a probation officer was negligent in her duties, causing the claimant, Lolita Urie, to be improperly and illegally arrested. When Urie timely appeared for a probation appointment with King County Probation Officer Nancy Thompson on March 16, 2004, she was …
Washington State’s King County Jail has paid $4,000 to settle the claim of Michael Chiofar, which sought damages for the failure of the Jail to assure that he was arraigned within 72 hours of his arrest as required by Washington law. He claimed that he was arrested on November 29, …
Washington State’s King County has paid $8,000 to settle the claim of Pantaleon F. Alba, who was overdetained by 10 days due to King County Correctional Facility records clerk, Kimberly Carver, failing to correct his good time credits. Carver transmitted to the Washington Department of Corrections an improper number of …
The California Court of Appeal for the First Appellate District has affirmed the denial of a habeas petition filed by a parolee seeking discharge from parole based on time served in excess of the prisoner’s base term.
Ronnie Bush was paroled from prison on March 19, 2005, after serving 20 years for a 1985 conviction for conspiracy to commit kidnapping. After his release, Bush filed a habeas petition asking that he be discharged from his five year parole period. Bush argued that the six-and-a-half years he served beyond his 12 ½ year base term should be applied to satisfy his five year parole.
The Superior Court denied relief, Bush appealed and the appeals court affirmed. “Custody credits in excess of a life prisoner’s base term are not applied to reduce the parole period,” the court of appeals held. See: In re Bush, 161 Cal. App. 4th 133, 74 Cal. Rptr. 3d 256 (1st Dist. 2008).
Washington State’s King County paid $2,500 to settle the claim of Randy A. Field, who was wrongfully arrested on September 20, 2004 and January 21, 2005 for violation of a non-contact order (NCO) with his wife, which had been withdrawn on November 9, 2001 after Field was acquitted of assaulting …
Washington State’s King County Jail paid $3,848.54 to settle the false imprisonment claim of Amanda Markholt, who was arrested on a warrant out of Pierce County for failing to take a blood test. The same day of her arrest, December 31, 2003, Markholt submitted to the test and the jail …
Washington State’s King County paid $7,540.64 to settle the claim of Richard D. Sweat, who was arrested for attempted robbery. During the investigation, Deputy Kirk Rains of the King County Sheriff’s Office was advised that the alleged crime was committed by a Hispanic man with black curly hair. Rains withheld …
Washington State’s King County paid $16,000 to settle the civil rights suit of Christopher L. Larson, who was due to be released from the Olympia City Jail on June 27, 2004, but a computer check revealed that Larson had an outstanding warrant in King County. The warrant at issue was …
