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$16,000 Awarded in Father's Day False Arrest

Article • April 15, 2009

Filed under: Damages, Wrongful Imprisonment, Family Law, Fathers in Prison, Police, False Arrest, Arrest Warrants

$16,000 Awarded in Father's Day False Arrest by On November 30, 2005, John McHenry of Delaware County, Pennsylvania was awarded $1,000 in compensatory damages and an additional $15,000 in punitive damages as a result of his civil rights suit for false arrest. On June 16, 2002, Father's Day, McHenry was …

Third Circuit Bars § 1983 Action For Untimely Release Under Heck

Article • January 15, 2009

Filed under: Sentencing, Habeas Corpus, Wrongful Imprisonment

Third Circuit Bars § 1983 Action For Untimely Release Under Heck by Pennsylvania state ex prisoner Hozay Royal appealed the 2004 dismissal of his 42 U.S.C. § 1983 action after being released six months past his mandatory release date. The dismissal was affirmed because the action was barred under Heck …

Pennsylvania County Jail System Overcrowded, Under-Regulated

Article • December 15, 2007 • from PLN December, 2007

Filed under: Staff-Prisoner Assault, GEO Group/Wackenhut, Civigenics, Primecare Medical, Guard Misconduct, Threats by Staff, Jail Misconduct, Organizing, Prison Rebellion, Systemic Medical Neglect, Skin, OB/GYN, Criminal Prosecution, Failure to Protect (General), Overcrowding, Guard Brutality/Beatings, Wrongful Imprisonment, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Suicides, ACA, State Legislation

Pennsylvania County Jail System Overcrowded, Under-Regulated by David Reutter by David M. Reutter Almost everyone with experience on the incarceration side of America's criminal justice system will tell you they would rather do time in prison than in a jail. The primary reason is that the overall conditions of confinement …

$500,000 Verdict in Pennsylvania Legal Malpractice Claim

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Malpractice (Attorneys), Sentencing, Wrongful Conviction, Wrongful Imprisonment

$500,000 Verdict in Pennsylvania Legal Malpractice Claim by The plaintiff in this case was charged with rape and indecent assault against a woman who was present at an orgy. Plaintiff said the matter was a consensual encounter. Plaintiff was held in Pennsylvania's Holmesburg Prison in lieu of 10% of a …

No Liability For Pennsylvania Prisoner Held Six Months Past Release Date

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Sentencing, Wrongful Imprisonment

No Liability For Pennsylvania Prisoner Held Six Months Past Release Date by The plaintiff complained that he was detained for six months beyond his maximum release date. His Eighth Amendment claim fails because he does not show deliberate indifference; the defendant in the prison got to work on the problem …

Prison Officials Liable for Holding Prisoner Past Release Date

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Sentencing, Wrongful Imprisonment

Prison Officials Liable for Holding Prisoner Past Release Date by The court of appeals for the Third circuit affirmed in part, reversed and remanded in part, a district court's ruling in favor of a Pennsylvania prisoner who was held nine months past his release date. The district court awarded $3,520 …

Over Detention Claim Must Show Knowledge or Failure to Act on Problem

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Sentencing, Wrongful Imprisonment

Over Detention Claim Must Show Knowledge or Failure to Act on Problem by A Pennsylvania federal district court held a prisoner failed to show prison officials were deliberately indifferent to his claims that he was over-detained. The SCI Graterford prisoner alleged prison officials violated his constitutional rights by detaining him …

Slow, Incompetent Investigation Causing Over Detention Not Deliberate Indifference

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: Prompt Hearings, Sentencing, Parole, Wrongful Imprisonment

Slow, Incompetent Investigation Causing Over Detention Not Deliberate Indifference by The Third Circuit Court of Appeals held a parole board' s misinterpretation of a sentencing court's order and a slow investigation into the order's meaning did not exhibit deliberate indifference. The plaintiff, a former prisoner of the Philadelphia County Prison, …

$2,500 Awarded in Pennsylvania False Arrest Claim

Article • May 15, 2007

Filed under: GEO Group/Wackenhut, Wrongful Imprisonment, Police, False Arrest, Arrest Warrants

$2,500 Awarded in Pennsylvania False Arrest Claim by The plaintiff in this case alleged that Wackenhut Corrections Corporation falsely imprisoned him due to mistaken identity, and failed to immediately release him when it was informed of the mistake by a parole officer. Plaintiff was stopped for a traffic violation in …

Cases of Interest From the U.S. Supreme Court's 1997-98 Term

Article • September 15, 1998 • from PLN September, 1998

Filed under: Prosecutor/Attorney General Misconduct, Damages, Settlements, Parole, Habeas Corpus, Wrongful Imprisonment, Forfeiture, Immunity/Liability, Prosecutorial Immunity

Cases of Interest From the U.S. Supreme Court's 1997-98 Term by Forfeitures: In a federal criminal case the supreme court held that the Excessive Fines clause of the Eighth amendment prohibits "grossly disproportionate" forfeitures of funds. The court held that forfeitures are "fines'' if they are punishment for a crime. …

True Lies in Philly

Article • June 15, 1995 • from PLN June, 1995

Filed under: Police Misconduct, Sentencing, Wrongful Imprisonment

True Lies in Philly by Five current or former police officers from the 39th District of North Philadelphia were indicted by a federal grand jury this past February, accused of framing dozens of Philadelphians. The indictment accuses the officers of warrant less searches both inside and outside their district, during …