Search | Wrongly Convicted

Texas Federal Judge Acquits VitaPro Defendants

Article • September 15, 2008 • from PLN September, 2008

Filed under: Contractor Misconduct, DOC/BOP misconduct, Criminal Prosecution, Food, Sentencing, Wrongful Imprisonment

Texas Federal Judge Acquits VitaPro Defendants by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke On April 22, 2008, Houston, Texas, federal judge Lynn Hughes acquitted former Texas prison chief James “Andy” Collins, 57, and former president and CEO of VitaPro Foods Yank Barry of federal charges for bribery, money laundering, conspiracy and …

$45,000 Damage Award to Traveler Detained in San Francisco Airport

Article • August 15, 2008

Filed under: Civil Procedure, Damages, Injunctions, Sanctions, Wrongful Imprisonment

$45,000 Damage Award to Traveler Detained in San Francisco Airport by The plaintiff was awarded $45,000 in compensatory and punitive damages against federal customs inspectors for unlawful detention at an airport on suspicion of drug smuggling. The plaintiff lacks standing to seek injunctive relief since she is not likely to …

Holding Prisoner 57 Days Without Judicial Appearance Unconstitutional

Article • August 15, 2008

Filed under: Court Access, Court Appearances, Wrongful Imprisonment

Holding Prisoner 57 Days Without Judicial Appearance Unconstitutional by The plaintiff turned himself in at the county jail after he learned that a warrant had been issued because he missed a court appearance concerning child support arrearages. The sheriff's office misfiled his records and kept him for 57 days despite …

Compassionless Conservative Texas Judge Closes Court Promptly, Ensuring Execution

Article • July 15, 2008 • from PLN July, 2008

Filed under: Judicial Misconduct, DNA Testing/Samples, Judiciary, Sentencing, Wrongful Imprisonment, Death Penalty

Compassionless Conservative Texas Judge Closes Court Promptly, Ensuring Execution by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke Sharon Keller, 54, presiding judge of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, has come under sharp criticism for refusing to keep the court open twenty minutes past its usual closing time to permit a late …

King County Washington Prisoner Gets over $3,100 for False Imprisonment

Article • July 15, 2008

Filed under: Wrongful Imprisonment, Police, False Arrest

King County Washington Prisoner Gets over $3,100 for False Imprisonment by Terry Sybil, a King County, Washington prisoner, served 10 days in the county jail on a bench warrant, but the warrant wasn't recalled. He was later arrested and held for 27 1/2 hours on the same warrant and sued …

33,000 California Prisoners May Need Credits Recalculated Due To Retroactive State Court Decisions

Article • June 15, 2008 • from PLN June, 2008

Filed under: Conditions of Confinement, Staffing, Good Time, Wrongful Imprisonment, Employee Litigation, Guard Unions

33,000 California Prisoners May Need Credits Recalculated Due To Retroactive State Court Decisions by John Dannenberg by John E. Dannenberg Three recent California court decisions interpreting California’s sentencing laws have spawned a need for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) to recalculate the release dates of an estimated …

FBI Informant Sues for 110 Days False Imprisonment in Oregon Prison

Article • June 15, 2008

Filed under: Informants, Sentencing, Wrongful Imprisonment

FBI Informant Sues for 110 Days False Imprisonment in Oregon Prison by An FBI informant is suing the Oregon Department of Corrections (ODOC) for holding him 110 days past his release date. In the late 1970s, Jack Rowlands gained notoriety by planting a bomb at Portland International Airport, in a …

No Due Process Violation for Holding Sex Offender Past Release Date

Article • May 15, 2008

Filed under: Sex Offenders (Discrimination), Sentencing, Wrongful Imprisonment

No Due Process Violation for Holding Sex Offender Past Release Date by The plaintiff, a convicted sex offender, was not released until three months after his conditional release date because his residence was not approved until then. The requirements for approval were formalized only one day before his CR date. …

Dismissal of Suit Against Parole Commissioner Reversed

Article • May 15, 2008

Filed under: Parole, Wrongful Imprisonment, Immunity/Liability, Judicial Immunity

Dismissal of Suit Against Parole Commissioner Reversed by The plaintiff alleged that a parole commissioner delayed his release for several months without justification. The district court should not have dismissed on grounds of absolute immunity without a record showing whether the commissioner's actions were quasi-adjudicative (warranting immunity) or administrative (not …

County Immune for Holding Federal Detainee Without Court Hearing

Article • May 15, 2008

Filed under: Court Access, Court Appearances, Wrongful Imprisonment, Federal Tort Claims Act, Municipal Liability

County Immune for Holding Federal Detainee Without Court Hearing by The plaintiff, a federal detainee held in a county jail, was detained for 12 days before being taken before a judicial officer. The Feds settled. The County could not be held liable because its actions did not cause the deprivation: …

Maryland Prison Officials Get Qualified Immunity for Prisoner “Retake” Orders

Article • May 15, 2008

Filed under: Sentencing, Parole, Wrongful Imprisonment, Qualified Immunity

Maryland Prison Officials Get Qualified Immunity for Prisoner “Retake” Orders by Maryland Prison Officials Get Qualified Immunity for Prisoner "Retake" Orders Based on a state appellate decision concerning sentence credit, prison officials decided they had released some prisoners incorrectly, so they had them arrested and reincarcerated through "retake orders." The …

Overdetention: When Completing a Prison Sentence Just Isn’t Enough

Article • February 15, 2008 • from PLN February, 2008

Filed under: Crime/Demographics, Databases, Wrongful Imprisonment

Overdetention: When Completing a Prison Sentence Just Isn’t Enough by David Reutter Overdetention: When Completing a Prison Sentence Just Isn't Enough by David M. Reutter One of the most basic functions of a prison system is releasing prisoners when their sentences expire. In April 2007, the Massachusetts Department of Correction …

Ninth Circuit Holds Washington DOC Immune From Suit for Denial of Community Custody Early Release

Article • February 15, 2008 • from PLN February, 2008

Filed under: Liberty Interests, Sentencing, Good Time, Parole, Wrongful Imprisonment, Qualified Immunity

Ninth Circuit Holds Washington DOC Immune From Suit for Denial of Community Custody Early Release by John Dannenberg by John E. Dannenberg The Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals held that the Secretary of the Washington State Department of Corrections (WDOC) was qualifiedly immune from suit by prisoners who claimed …

Once Court Orders Arrestee Held, Police Have No Duty to Investigate Mistaken Identity

Article • January 15, 2008

Filed under: Sentencing, Wrongful Imprisonment, False Arrest

Once Court Orders Arrestee Held, Police Have No Duty to Investigate Mistaken Identity by The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals has held that once an arrested person has been brought before a court and ordered held, law enforcement has no duty to verify claims of mistaken identity. Chicago police stopped …

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 …

Michigan: $3.3 Million Settlement for 9 Years Wrongful Imprisonment

Article • December 15, 2007

Filed under: Searches, DNA Testing/Samples, Damages, Wrongful Imprisonment

Michigan: $3.3 Million Settlement for 9 Years Wrongful Imprisonment by On September 5, 2005, a man who spent nine years in prison for a rape he didn?t commit settled with the Township ...

One-Off Offing: Why You Won't See a Disbarment Like Mike Nifong's Again

Article • December 15, 2007

Filed under: Prosecutor/Attorney General Misconduct, Criminal Prosecution, Sentencing, Wrongful Imprisonment

One-Off Offing: Why You Won't See a Disbarment Like Mike Nifong's Again by David Feige By David Feige Posted Monday, June 18, 2007, at 6:04 PM ET Now that justice has prevailed in the Duke rape case, with the nice innocent boys exonerated and the prosecutor who hounded them disbarred, …

Clarification:

Article • October 15, 2007 • from PLN October, 2007

Filed under: Sentencing, Wrongful Imprisonment

Clarification: by The July 2007 issue of Prison Legal News reported Sarsfield v. City of Marlborough, $13,655,940 Award for False Massachusetts Rape Conviction and Gregory v. City of Louisville, Louisville, Kentucky Settles with Wrongly Imprisoned Man for $3.9 Million. Barry Scheck was lead counsel for both plaintiffs, but while he …

Wisconsin Over Detention Suit Not Barred by Rooker-Feldman Doctrine

Article • September 15, 2007 • from PLN September, 2007

Filed under: Sentencing, Wrongful Imprisonment

Wisconsin Over Detention Suit Not Barred by Rooker-Feldman Doctrine by The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a lower court?s dismissal of a prisoner?s suit related to a delay in granting time served credits. The court concluded that plaintiff?s claims were not barred by the Rooker-Feldman doctrine. In 1997, Reginald …

Wrongfully Imprisoned California Man Awarded $18 Million

Article • August 15, 2007 • from PLN August, 2007

Filed under: Police Misconduct, Sex Offenders (Discrimination), Damages, Wrongful Imprisonment, Police, False Arrest

Wrongfully Imprisoned California Man Awarded $18 Million by On February 15, 2006, a federal jury in California awarded $18 million to a man who was wrongly charged with sexual assault of a child and imprisoned for 10 months. During his false imprisonment in the Los Angeles County Jail, Ramirez, 26, …