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Federal Appeals Court Upholds D.C. Guard’s Termination for Assaulting Prisoner

Article • July 3, 2015

Filed under: Guard Misconduct, Guard Brutality/Beatings, Employee Litigation

Federal Appeals Court Upholds D.C. Guard’s Termination for Assaulting Prisoner by Federal Appeals Court Upholds D.C. Guard’s Termination for Assaulting Prisoner The Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia dismissed the suit of a jail guard who was fired in 2006 after an investigation found that he had assaulted ...

Pennsylvania County Settles First Amendment Suit with Former Deputy Warden for $87,500

Article • July 1, 2015

Filed under: Guard Misconduct, Retaliation against Staff, Whistleblowing, Employee Litigation

Pennsylvania County Settles First Amendment Suit with Former Deputy Warden for $87,500 by Pennsylvania County Settles First Amendment Suit with Former Deputy Warden for $87,500 On November 16, 2012, Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, the county prison board, and the prison's warden settled a lawsuit brought by a former deputy warden alleging ...

Sheriff Ordered to Reinstate Contractors’ Security Clearances to Remedy Retaliation for Blanket Strip-Search Litigation

Article • June 12, 2015

Filed under: Retaliation for Litigating, Retaliation against Staff, Strip Searches, Employee Searches, Employee Litigation

Sheriff Ordered to Reinstate Contractors’ Security Clearances to Remedy Retaliation for Blanket Strip-Search Litigation by Sheriff Ordered to Reinstate Contractors’ Security Clearances to Remedy Retaliation for Blanket Strip-Search Litigation A Virginia federal district court ordered a sheriff to reinstate the security clearances of six contractors after it found the Sheriff ...

Santa Clara County Fulfilled Meeting and Conferring Obligations in Reducing Peace Officer's Work Hours

Article • June 10, 2015

Filed under: Staffing, Employee Litigation, Guard Unions, Police

Santa Clara County Fulfilled Meeting and Conferring Obligations in Reducing Peace Officer's Work Hours by Santa Clara County Fulfilled Meeting and Conferring Obligations in Reducing Peace Officer's Work Hours The California Appeals Court for the Sixth District has held that Santa Clara County (“County”) fulfilled its lawful obligations “to meet ...

Alleged Retaliation towards Police Deputy Unrelated to First Amendment Protection, Federal Court Holds

Article • June 9, 2015

Filed under: Employee Litigation, Police

Alleged Retaliation towards Police Deputy Unrelated to First Amendment Protection, Federal Court Holds by Alleged Retaliation towards Police Deputy Unrelated to First Amendment Protection, Federal Court Holds The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has held that a former police sergeant’s freedom of speech and association rights were ...

Arbitrator’s Award on Pay Raises for Prison Guards Costs Pennsylvania County $5 Million

Article • June 3, 2015 • from PLN June, 2015

Filed under: Cost of Prison Systems, Staffing, Guards/Staff, Employee Litigation, Guard Unions

Arbitrator’s Award on Pay Raises for Prison Guards Costs Pennsylvania County $5 Million by David Reutter Arbitrator’s Award on Pay Raises for Prison Guards Costs Pennsylvania County $5 Million by David M. Reutter Pennsylvania’s Lancaster County Commission has been forced to dip into its reserve funds to comply with an ...

Former Nurse at Maine State Prison Files Suit Over Racial Slurs

Article • June 3, 2015 • from PLN June, 2015

Filed under: Corizon, Racial Discrimination, Employee Litigation

Former Nurse at Maine State Prison Files Suit Over Racial Slurs by Joe Watson Former Nurse at Maine State Prison Files Suit Over Racial Slurs by Joe Watson For the second time in as many years, allegations of racism have been leveled against employees at the Maine State Prison. In ...

Whistleblower Investigation Report, Washington DOC, 2014-2015

Publication • April 16, 2015

Filed under: Guard Brutality/Beatings, Censorship, Employee Litigation

Whistleblower Investigation Report, Washington DOC, 2014-2015 Whistleblower Investigation Report Department of Corrections For the period July 1, 2014 through June 30, 2015 Published April 16, 2015 Report No. 1014026 Washington State Auditor Troy Kelley April 16, 2015 Bernie Warner, Secretary Department of Corrections Report on Whistleblower Investigation Attached is the ...

Whistleblower Investigation Report Washington DOC, 2013-2014

Publication • April 13, 2015

Filed under: Guard Misconduct, Censorship, First Amendment, Employee Litigation

Whistleblower Investigation Report Washington DOC, 2013-2014 Whistleblower Investigation Report Department of Corrections For the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014 Published April 13, 2015 Report No. 1014005 Washington State Auditor Troy Kelley April 13, 2015 Bernie Warner, Secretary Department of Corrections Report on Whistleblower Investigation Attached is the ...

Oregon Prison Guard Union Sues Mentally Ill Prisoners

Article • April 9, 2015 • from PLN April, 2015

Filed under: Mental Health, Employee Litigation, Guard Unions

Oregon Prison Guard Union Sues Mentally Ill Prisoners by Oregon Prison Guard Union Sues Mentally Ill Prisoners Oregon prison officials report that around 16 percent of the state’s 14,500 prisoners are “severely mentally ill.” In 2013 the union representing Oregon guards began suing some of those prisoners, in part to ...

Nebraska: Dakota County Shells Out $575,000 to Settle Sexual Harassment and Discrimination Lawsuits Against Former Sheriff

Article • January 13, 2015

Filed under: Staff-Staff Harassment, Gender Discrimination -- Women, Racial Discrimination, Employee Litigation

Nebraska: Dakota County Shells Out $575,000 to Settle Sexual Harassment and Discrimination Lawsuits Against Former Sheriff by Nebraska: Dakota County Shells Out $575,000 to Settle Sexual Harassment and Discrimination Lawsuits Against Former Sheriff In January 2013, Dakota County, Nebraska settled a federal lawsuit brought by Alana Crutcher-Sanchez, a former correctional ...

GEO Group Agrees to End Sexual Harassment; Pays $140,000 Settlement and Implements New Policies

Article • January 13, 2015

Filed under: Wackenhut/Geo Group, Staff-Staff Harassment, Title VII, Employee Litigation

GEO Group Agrees to End Sexual Harassment; Pays $140,000 Settlement and Implements New Policies by GEO Group Agrees to End Sexual Harassment; Pays $140,000 Settlement and Implements New Policies The nation’s second-largest for profit prison company, the GEO Group, agreed to pay $140,000 to settle a sexual harassment lawsuit brought ...

Hostile Work Environment at Florida Jail Results in $262,000 Jury Award for Guard

Article • January 12, 2015

Filed under: Racial Discrimination, Employee Litigation

Hostile Work Environment at Florida Jail Results in $262,000 Jury Award for Guard by Hostile Work Environment at Florida Jail Results in $262,000 Jury Award for Guard In March 2013, a Florida jury awarded $262,127.86 to a corrections sergeant who alleged her supervisors at the Palm Beach County Jail discriminated ...

D.C. Jail Guard Suicidal after Feces Thrown in Face, Sues DOC

Article • December 3, 2014 • from PLN December, 2014

Filed under: Employee Litigation

D.C. Jail Guard Suicidal after Feces Thrown in Face, Sues DOC by D.C. Jail Guard Suicidal after Feces Thrown in Face, Sues DOC A former guard with the District of Columbia Department of Corrections (DOC) sued his ex-employer in November 2012, claiming he developed PTSD and suicidal tendencies after a ...

New Mexico Guard Sues Over Termination for Medical Marijuana Use

Article • October 10, 2014

Filed under: Drug Testing, Employee Searches, Employee Litigation

New Mexico Guard Sues Over Termination for Medical Marijuana Use by New Mexico Guard Sues Over Termination for Medical Marijuana Use A former New Mexico jail guard and veteran of the Iraq war is suing the county where he was employed after being fired for a positive drug test, even ...

CCA Guard Killed During Riot was on Prisoners’ “Hit List”

Article • June 7, 2014 • from PLN June, 2014

Filed under: Corrections Corporation of America, Prison Rebellion, Prison Gangs, Prison/Jail Murders, Employee Litigation

CCA Guard Killed During Riot was on Prisoners’ “Hit List” by Matthew Clarke CCA Guard Killed During Riot was on Prisoners’ “Hit List” by Matt Clarke A federal lawsuit filed by the family of a guard murdered during a riot at a Mississippi facility claims that prison officials knew the ...

High-Ranking Illinois Prison Official Fired due to Criminal History

Article • May 20, 2014 • from PLN May, 2014

Filed under: DOC/BOP misconduct, Gang Policies, Employee Litigation

High-Ranking Illinois Prison Official Fired due to Criminal History by High-Ranking Illinois Prison Official Fired due to Criminal History   According to court records obtained by the Chicago Sun Times, Xadrian R. McCraven, 44, has a lengthy criminal history that includes a 1987 conviction for disorderly conduct, a 1989 conviction ...

Idaho Supreme Court Vacates Summary Judgment for Pepper Spray Manufacturer

Article • May 20, 2014 • from PLN May, 2014

Filed under: Pepper Spray/Tear Gas, Summary Judgment, Employee Litigation

Idaho Supreme Court Vacates Summary Judgment for Pepper Spray Manufacturer by Mark Wilson Idaho Supreme Court Vacates Summary Judgment for Pepper Spray Manufacturer   by Mark Wilson   On August 27, 2013, Idaho’s Supreme Court held that a lower state court improperly granted summary judgment to a pepper spray manufacturer ...

Prison Officials Not Liable for Injuries to Officer Incurred While Responding to Orchestrated Gang Fight

Article • August 15, 2013

Filed under: Guards/Staff, Employee Litigation

Prison Officials Not Liable for Injuries to Officer Incurred While Responding to Orchestrated Gang Fight by The California Court of Appeal held in 2007 that prison officials could not be held liable for injuries sustained by a corrections officer who was responding to a fight between rival gangs, even if ...

Sexual Harassment and Retaliatory Termination Nets $275,000

Article • August 15, 2013

Filed under: Sexual Harassment, Staff-Staff Harassment, Employee Litigation

Sexual Harassment and Retaliatory Termination Nets $275,000 by A female Ohio jail guard was awarded $275,000 for sexual harassment and wrongful, retaliatory termination. Michelle Hendricks began working as a jail guard for the Clermont County Sheriff’s Office in 1998. In January, 2002, a coworker handcuffed her to a chair in ...