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.
LASD says hundreds of millions have gone into staffing, medical care and infrastructure, while the attorney general alleges preventable deaths and neglect
An autopsy cited complications from mechanical asphyxia, with cardiovascular disease as a contributing factor in the Wyandotte County Detention Center death
The proposal would remove a federal restriction that has long blocked prisons from using signal-jamming technology
Amendment will ask voters to reduce penalties for drug offenses, send defendants to treatment
Senate Bill 1279 would largely limit the maximum term of imprisonment for felony convictions
Ohio Dept. of Rehabilitation and Correction Dir. Gary Mohr said that Ohio’s prison system needs its own mental-health hospital to treat inmates
The lawsuit is at least the 13th federal case filed in the past five years against Montgomery County Jail alleging mistreatment of inmates
Current state law allows sheriffs to receive any leftover inmate-food money as a supplement to their salaries
The bill would require re-sentencing prior offenders, which could cause problems in cases where offenders pleaded guilty
Critics say the law could free rapists and murderers who completed two years of mental health treatment
The jury agreed with prosecutors that Norman Seabrook accepted $60,000 in cash bribes in 2014 to funnel $20 million in union funds to a hedge fund
The compensation is for unpaid work correctional officers performed before and after their shifts
The lawsuit estimates a third of the prison systems’ approximately 19,000 inmates could have chronic hepatitis C
The woman was kept in jail for nearly a month because she couldn’t pay a $55 release fee
Jeff Boppre is seeking to reopen his case by using latent fingerprint technology to identify fingerprints left at the crime scene
The 2016 attack is now the subject of a lawsuit that raises serious questions about the safety of medical personnel working in the state’s prisons
The federal lawsuit filed late Tuesday could delay the Aug. 14 execution of Carey Dean Moore, who was sentenced to death for killing two Omaha cab drivers in 1979
Court documents argue that drug company Alvogen’s effort to block the use of its sedative midazolam is part of a “guerrilla war against the death penalty”
Excessive bail is a major issue for low-level, non-violent, non-serious misdemeanor defendants who pose little threat to public safety
Officials released a final report updating progress in responding to 41 recommendations contained in a review after a deadly prison riot
The bill would add a section to federal civil rights statutes that would include a penalty for wearing a mask
Gov. Kay Ivey rescinded the state’s 2008 policy of “paying prisoner food service allowances directly to sheriffs in their personal capacities”
Dwight and Steven Hammond were convicted in 2012 of intentionally and maliciously setting fires on public lands
During a holy month when he was supposed to be fasting, a Muslim inmate in the Mecklenburg County Jail still wanted his lunch
Legislation like the Clean Slate bill keeps ex-prisoners out of the correctional system, minimizing costly recidivism rates and enhancing public safety
Our criminal justice system should not unfairly target individuals of lower socioeconomic means; here’s what needs to change
The officer is suing the state of North Carolina, alleging that he was discriminated against due to his race and religion after being told he must shave his beard
The defense argues that security measures used to transport Guzman from a jail in Manhattan to a Brooklyn courthouse create a public spectacle that’s prejudicial
The transgender woman is seeking to be transferred from an all-male prison to a women’s facility
An inmate is suing the DOC for denying him gallbladder surgery because he was close to his release date
Correctional facilities need to build bridges between prisoners and the community to give inmates the best chance for a successful reintegration
Over the past six months, four COs have been attacked – one of them killed – by SCI-Somerset inmates
Implementing an electronic law library can contain research costs and reduce risks of inmate litigation, while keeping your facility in compliance with specific state mandates