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.
Supreme Court will hear case of Rastafarian whose dreadlocks were shaved by La. corrections officers
Damon Landor hadn’t cut his hair in nearly two decades when he entered Louisiana’s prison system in 2020 on a five-month sentence
The Theranos founder says her work as a reentry clerk and legal aide demonstrates rehabilitation and qualifies her for a 27-month reduction
The inmate tried to choke a sergeant, punched an officer in the face and bit another officer’s thumb, “causing significant injury”
Money has been awarded to fix overcrowding and staffing shortages, but lawmakers say the concern is the increase in inmate violence
Pistorius will seek permission to appeal against his 6-year murder sentence tomorrow in South Africa
Gov. John Kasich is discussing combining the Department of Rehabilitation and Correction and the Department of Youth Services
A voter-approved initiative that reduced penalties for certain drug and property crimes has led to the lowest arrest rate in state history
Gerald “Jerry” DeLemus and Blaine Cooper are each accused of being “mid-level” organizers, recruiters and trainers of armed Bundy backers
Gov. Terry McAuliffe has again restored the voting rights of about 13,000 felons after his previous attempt was blocked by the state Supreme Court
Texas is exploring new ways to help inmates escape gangs
The six employees who were assaulted have been treated for non-life threatening injuries and released from the hospital
Under the reforms agreed to by the state, disciplinary confinement no longer can be used for minors or for inmates who are pregnant
Governor Susana Martinez plans to attempt to reinstate the death penalty in response to recent events including the killing of a police officer
Attorneys say the ruling may help protect people in general in addition to law enforcement officers
Next month, the program will allow those destined for secure detention or other sanctions to receive after-school assistance and therapeutic services
A bill to abolish capital punishment cleared the state Senate by a single vote last year but was defeated in the House earlier this year
After the DOC canceled the band’s scheduled set inside the prison over security concerns, the supergroup played an impromptu show outside the walls
Kamilla Denise London is accusing officials of denying her access to hormone therapy, reading her mail and putting her in solitary confinement
The Supreme Court decided that specific wording in the Armed Career Criminal Act was unconstitutionally vague and denied defendants their due process rights
The proposal comes as Chicago is seeing another violent year, with shootings contributing to 381 homicides
A former Pendleton Correctional Facility inmate is suing five Indiana Department of Correction officials alleging they censored a newspaper that featured a story on him
The sheriff’s office is looking into whether booking photos of two Muslim women arrested were improperly released, showing them without hijabs
The federal appellate court already has dismissed a prior appeal by Ammon Bundy
The ban prevents nearly 3,000 registered sex offenders on parole from playing “Pokemon Go” in an effort to safeguard children who play
A former inmate is contending a doctor and two nurses tried to superglue a wound on his chin twice
McAuliffe vowed to fight the ruling by signing clemency grants for the state’s ex-offenders one by one
Nurse alleges the agency won’t let him use the men’s restroom and locker room
Attorneys for eight inmates asked Arkansas’ highest court to reconsider its decision upholding a state law that keeps information about lethal injection drugs confidential
A federal judge says the Corrections Corporation of America will stand trial in a civil rights lawsuit over understaffing and violence at an Idaho prison
State committee failed to agree Friday on whether Colorado’s corrections agency violated victims’ rights by refusing to reveal where the Aurora theater shooter is serving his sentence
State can execute eight death row inmates, a split state Supreme Court ruled Thursday
Lawsuit contends the judge routinely jails people who can’t pay fines for minor traffic or misdemeanor offenses without checking to see why they can’t pay
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