Jail

Lawsuit: Virginia Inmate’s Fatal Injuries Were Ignored

The mother of a Virginia inmate who died in jail is suing officials, saying her son’s urgent medical needs were ignored and led to his 2017 death. FARMVILLE, Va. (AP) — The mother of a Virginia inmate who died in jail is suing officials, saying her son’s urgent medical needs were ignored and contributed to his 2017 death. The Richmond Times-Dispatch reports Victoria Sisson filed a lawsuit …


LA County Pays $1.7 Million to Settle Jail Suicide Lawsuit

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved a $1.7 million payment Tuesday to settle a lawsuit brought by the daughters of a man who committed suicide in the Twin Towers jail. The suit had alleged that jail mental health officials failed to properly diagnose Eric Loberg’s mental state and the degree to which he was a suicide risk. The 48-year-old Loberg, diagnosed as schizophrenic, …


Lawsuit Says Jacksonville Can’t Jail Defendants for Being Too Poor to Pay Bail

A new lawsuit could upend Jacksonville’s system of detaining poor defendants charged with minor crimes. The lawsuit filed Thursday says Jacksonville’s system of money bail — that is, someone charged with a crime must pay a set amount to be released without regard to the defendant’s ability to pay — violates poor defendants’ rights to equal protection under the law. The current system allows the …



Pepper Spray Lawsuit: At Least 4 Agencies Investigate Jail Event

Up to four agencies are investigating the 2015 pepper spraying of Amber Swink in a seven-point restraint chair by then Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Judith Sealey, court documents confirmed. Now, attorneys defending against Swink’s federal civil lawsuit told a judge they would face an “impossible decision” if Sealey and other Montgomery County Jail leaders give depositions while still …



Alabama Town Agrees in Settlement to Stop Operating Debtors’ Prison

The settlement has been preliminarily approved by the U.S. District Court in Montgomery. The court will hold a final hearing in August to decide whether to formally approve the agreement. In a town where almost 30 percent of the population lives below the poverty line, at least 190 impoverished people were jailed for nonpayment within a two-year period.


Alabama City Accused of Jailing Poor People Reaches Legal Settlement

An Alabama city reached a legal settlement with the Southern Poverty Law Center Tuesday to end a class action lawsuit that accused it, and its chief of police, of illegally jailing people too poor to pay fines resulting from traffic and misdemeanor offences. The City of Alexander and Chief of Police Willie Robinson were accused of jailing at least 190 impoverished people over a two-year period, …


Woman Died After Being Left Unattended for Hours in Jail

A family said their loved one died in the Atlanta City Jail, where she was being held for a minor crime, and it took hours for anyone to find her. Records show Wickie Bryant was booked into the Atlanta City Detention Center in Sept. 2015 after police arrested her for disorderly conduct. Bryant suffered from schizophrenia and diabetes, …


Pregnant Inmates File Lawsuit Over Allegheny County Jail Solitary Confinement

In one instance, the federal lawsuit alleges, the pregnant woman was placed in solitary confinement for having a library book that had pictures and envelopes inside it. In another instance, a pregnant inmate had three pairs of shoes instead of two. In none of the instances in which five pregnant women were held for up to 22 days in solitary confinement at the Allegheny County Jail were any of …