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.
Lancaster County Prison corrections officers working in temperatures above 80 degrees are eligible for additional time off under a sustained arbitration ruling
Richard Jordan was sentenced to death in 1976 for killing and kidnapping a mother of two young children
Prosecutors have a different perspective on Raymond Minaya’s motives: the Gorilla Stone Bloods member has a long history of violence and rule-breaking behind bars
Ronald Prible was sentenced to death on a capital murder charge in connection with the slayings of five family members in 1999
In addition to the risk of depression and suicide, transgender people experience sexual violence, harassment and other adverse conditions at higher rates than the general population
The lawsuit claims officials failed to provide clean environments, basic sanitary supplies and PPE to prisoners and staff
The lawsuit accuses Gov. Mike DeWine and the state’s prison director of violating their constitutional rights by failing to do more to prevent an outbreak
A judge ruled the inmates had failed to prove KDOC didn’t provide adequate medical care or acted with deliberate difference to their medical needs
Two COs said they were retaliated against after filing complaints alleging disability discrimination
The U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals said a judge overstepped when she ruled Metro West Detention Center inmates get the supplies and be tested for COVID-19
Oakland County Jail inmate Jamaal Cameron said he could reach from his jail cell out, around and into an adjacent cell where inmates with COVID-19 were held
“The respondents are not being deliberately indifferent to the health and safety of the inmates ... the court is denying the relief that is sought,” a chief justice said
The department is facing a class action lawsuit after more than 1,400 inmates were confirmed COVID-19 positive and 41 inmates have died
Cortney Rolley and Christopher Hampton were beaten by Elmore Correctional Facility Sgt. Ulysses Oliver Jr., who faces up to 20 years in prison
As of Monday, 176 prisoners within jurisdiction of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and 120 employees had tested positive for COVID-19
Judge Matthew Kennelly’s order called on jail authorities to speak regularly to inmates to stress the importance of social distancing
Lawyers are trying to persuade a judge to permanently undo a state law that requires felons to first settle their financial debts before regaining the right to vote
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham argued she has taken sufficient steps to reduce the threat of COVID-19 to inmates
In a 5-4 decision, a court majority found the emergency petition by Columbia Legal Services had not proven the state is failing in its duties to incarcerated people
Health experts and criminal justice advocates are pushing for early inmate releases to alleviate crowding
The assistant director of Cook County Jail testified that more than 175 tiers in the facility have transitioned to single-cell housing to help stem the spread of COVID-19
Corrections officers claim they are due pay for the time it takes to begin and end each shift
Lawyers argued the ruling was “absurd,” because it prioritized the needs of inmates over front line workers
“Now it’s Connecticut’s turn to protect us,” Collin Provost, a state prison corrections officer and union president, said
U.S. District Judge Jon S. Tigar said the state’s COVID-19 death toll and overall numbers were far worse than those reflected in the prisons
Inmates claim imprisonment during the pandemic puts their health at risk and violates their constitutional rights to be free from cruel and unusual punishment
The ACLU urged a judge to release vulnerable inmates at FCC Oakdale to home confinement, calling the facility a tinderbox “ready to explode”
A lawsuit claims Gov. Greg Abbott exceeded his authority and improperly removed judges’ discretionary powers
U.S. District Judge Matthew Kennelly mandated that Chicago’s Cook County Jail test all inmates as soon as they show signs of COVID-19
“We can’t incarcerate our way out of this pandemic, but governors, sheriffs, prosecutors, and the president have the power, and responsibility, to save lives,” an ACLU official said
Learn how COVID-19 has impacted law enforcement and corrections personnel and how public safety has adjusted its response
The judge also ordered Miami-Dade Corrections and Rehabilitation to explain what steps are being taken to protect already sick inmates from COVID-19
A judge ruled that although Baca faced a heightened risk of contracting COVID-19, releasing him on bail wouldn’t mitigate the threat to his health
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