Milwaukee, Wisconsin — County jail staff cut Terrill Thomas’ access to water in his cell for seven consecutive days before he died of dehydration, USA Today reports. Thomas was too mentally unstable to ask for help as he slowly died, prosecutors said. The statements from prosecutors are the first official account, validating what inmates previously told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Los Angeles — The death of four inmates in jails run by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department in March prompted a protest near downtown Los Angeles. A … [Read more...] about News Briefs
News Briefs
June 2016 News Briefs
San Quentin – Bernard L. Hamilton, 64, a Death Row inmate, died of natural causes on March 28. Hamilton was sentenced to death on March 2, 1981, for a second-degree burglary and first-degree murder in 1979. There are 747 inmates on Death Row. Lincoln, Neb. – The state’s corrections director asked India-based Harris Pharma LLP to repay $26,700 for 1,000 vials of sodium thiopental not imported and delivered, The Associated Press reports. The firm refused to return payment, saying the state’s failure to import them wasn’t their fault. Texas … [Read more...] about June 2016 News Briefs
May 2016 News Briefs
Sacramento, Calif. — Gov. Jerry Brown granted clemency to 59 people, just before Easter Sunday. Most were convicted of nonviolent drug-related crimes. All of those pardoned have obtained a court certificate declaring that they are now rehabilitated. A gubernatorial pardon may be granted to people who have demonstrated exemplary behavior and have lived productive and law-abiding lives following their conviction. Los Angeles — Robert Contreras will be paid nearly $6.9 million to settle a lawsuit after police shot him and left him paralyzed, … [Read more...] about May 2016 News Briefs
April 2016 News Briefs
Seattle, Wash. — The state’s highest court is taking a new look at the death penalty. Dozens of former state judges are claiming the state’s death penalty is unconstitutional, the Associate Press reports. Sacramento, Calif. — State prison officials announced that inmate firefighter Shawna Lynn Jones, 22, died from her injuries on Feb. 25. Jones was struck by a boulder that had rolled down a hill. She was airlifted to UCLA Medical Center, where she was listed in critical condition with major head injuries. Jones’ organs were donated after she … [Read more...] about April 2016 News Briefs
March 2016 News Briefs
Denver, Colo. — After filing a complaint accusing prison officials of falsifying figures of the mentally ill and violent inmates, a former statistician for the state Department of Corrections will receive more than $260,000 plus accrued leave time in a settlement, The Associated Press reports. The statistician, Maureen O’Keefe, said that the state silenced her for her allegations against prison director Rick Raemisch, The Denver Post reports. O’Keefe declined to comment about the agreement, which includes a disclaimer that prison officials … [Read more...] about March 2016 News Briefs
February 2016 News Briefs
Alaska — In December the Alaska Criminal Justice Commission released recommendations that include re-evaluating pretrial practices, focusing on incarceration for serious and violent offenders, strengthening parole and probation to keep Alaskans from re-offending and prioritizing the needs of crime victims. If adopted, the commission says significant reductions in the state’s prison population would occur and $424 million could be saved over the next decade, Alaska News reports. Sacramento — Gov. Jerry Brown named Scott Kernan, a former state … [Read more...] about February 2016 News Briefs
January 2016 News Briefs
Sacramento – At the start of next year, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation Secretary Jeffrey Beard is stepping down to return to his family in Pennsylvania, reports Los Angeles Times reporter Paige St. John. “When he took the job in December 2012, he thought he might be here for a couple of years but that he had no fixed time line,” said agency spokesman Jeffrey Callison. “It’s now three years on, and he feels it’s time to focus more of his time and energy on his family who live a couple of thousand miles away.” Los … [Read more...] about January 2016 News Briefs
December 2015 News Briefs
Bismarck, N.D.— “There are too many inmates and not enough capacity,” said Leann Bertsch, director of the North Dakota Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, The Associated Press reports. Prison administrators blame the state’s overcrowded prisons on people coming to the state to work on the oil fields. The prisons are holding 500 more inmates than they are designed to hold, topping 1,800 prisoners. Negotiations are under way to send some inmates to a private prison in Colorado. Oklahoma — Execution of prisoners on the state’s Death … [Read more...] about December 2015 News Briefs
November 2015 News Briefs
Tucson, Ariz.—“Felons are our best clients,” said Les Boynton, CEO of the apartment company Second Chance Rentals, to The Associated Press. “They value their housing.” The Phoenix-based company is expanding operations to Tucson. Pittsburgh, PA — Lewis Fogle, 63, served 34 years in prison after being convicted of raping and killing a 15-year-old girl. In August, new DNA testing brought doubt into Fogle’s conviction, which led a judge to void his conviction, UPI reports. County prosecutors agreed to dismiss all charges against … [Read more...] about November 2015 News Briefs
September 2015 News Briefs
Sacramento — For the first time since 2006, California has regained full control of the inmate healthcare system in one of its prisons, The Associated Press reports. J. Clark Kelso, the overseer of prison medical care and spending, returned responsibility for the health of some 2,400 inmates at Folsom State Prison on June 8, to the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. Sacramento — Dean Borg, 52, has been appointed deputy director of the Division of Facility Planning, Construction and Management at the California … [Read more...] about September 2015 News Briefs