Legal
Legal issues in the correctional system encompass various topics, including inmate rights, staff conduct, and compliance with state and federal laws. This directory offers articles and resources on the legal aspects of correctional facility operations, helping staff stay informed about the regulations and policies that govern their work. Understanding legal responsibilities is essential for minimizing liability and ensuring facilities operate within the law. For more information, explore our section on Corrections Policies.
Prosecutors amended Randall Hepp’s felony misconduct charge as part of a plea deal tied to ongoing investigations at Waupun Correctional Institution
A civil rights lawsuit claimed Nebraska State Penitentiary officials violated the Eighth Amendment by placing an inmate with a dangerous, mentally ill cellmate
The Sgt. Mickey Hutchens Act allows law enforcement, including prison and parole staff, to buy up to four years of retirement time tied to training or education
The Supreme Court has overturned an appeal that would have released a man convicted of helping to kill a woman
It is rare for the state’s high court to reverse a death sentence
An Atlanta woman on Friday filed suit against a host of defendants, saying she was arrested by mistake and then spent 53 days in jail
South Dakota this year joined a growing list of states that have made non-fatal choking a felony crime
The governor said the new law will save taxpayer dollars while making prison space available for the state’s most violent criminals
Spokesman: The department doesn’t support shuttering the 1,300-bed prison and wasn’t consulted
Tougher sentencing measure awaiting Gov. Bill Haslam’s signature attempts to deter domestic violence
Lawsuit asks permission to hold daily group prayers in a highly restricted cell block at a federal prison
An inmate is suing the hospital where he was circumcised, saying he only recently became aware of the procedure
Female inmates claimed they were confined to their cells on weekends, sometimes for as long as 50 hours
Court ruled against a NJ man who complained that strip searches in two county jails violated his civil rights
Three inmates who are male-to-female transsexuals filed suits after prison doctors stopped providing hormone treatments
Bill would give prison inmates time off their sentences for earning high-school diplomas and other degrees
The bill would increase the maximum penalty from a year in jail to five years in prison for knowingly making a false statement to police about a missing child
The Mississippi Supreme Court upheld the pardons issued by former Gov. Haley Barbour
Some say the tens of thousands of criminals being shifted to county jails and community supervision should be eligible to vote
Court says a death row inmate can’t change his court-appointed lawyer because he didn’t like the defense tactics
The arrestees sought a court order barring collection of DNA from people who are arrested but not convicted, arguing the process is an unconstitutional search and seizure
The measure is aimed at preventing death-row inmates from filing repeated appeals in an effort to delay their executions
The bill in Florida increases the maximum penalty from a year in jail to five years in prison for knowingly making a false statement to police about a missing child
Outgoing Gov. Haley Barbour pardoned nearly 200 people who worked as trusties at the Governor’s Mansion
The high court ruled 7-2 that Billy Joe Reynolds can challenge his arrest for violating the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act
Barbour said Friday during his first interview on the pardons that nearly 190 of the people who got pardons or other reprieves had already been released from prison before his actions
County’s controversial illegal immigration policy, which critics say paved the way for a suspect in a deadly drunken-driving crash to bond out of jail and disappear, may very well violate federal law
Under jail policy, inmates who enter into county jails and disclose they are gay are placed into protective custody and separated from the general jail population
AG Jim Hood said he believes Barbour might’ve violated the state constitution by pardoning some inmates who failed to give sufficient public notice that they were seeking to have their records cleared
Inmate says neglect left him with two permanently damaged arms
Judges already can bar testimony when the police do something to influence a witness to identify a suspect
U.S. District Court Judge Gregory Frost said he does not want to micromanage Ohio executions but added that the Department of Corrections has left him no choice by disobeying his previous orders
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