Skip navigation

Articles in Verdict1

TDCJ Guards Denied Qualified Immunity in Failure to Protect Case

On April 14, 2004, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) agreed to pay $84,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by Texas prisoner Eugene Cantu. The original complaint was filed July 3, 2000 pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1983 alleging he was subjected to cruel and unusual punishment when guards ...

TDCJ Pays $95,000 to Settle Discrimination Suit

On October 28, 2008, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) agreed to pay former employee, Karon K. Connelly, $41,524.38 to settle a discrimination suit she had filed in May 2003. In addition to that amount, TDCJ is to pay $38,000 in attorney's fees to attorneys Martin A. Shellist, Mark ...

TDCJ Pays $267,000 to Settle Discrimination Claim

On September 15, 2005, the TDCJ agreed to pay a total of $267,500 to Melissa Roberts to settle a complaint she filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunities Commission (EEOC) under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Represented by the Law Offices of Kathleen Day, to whom ...

TDCJ Settles Race Discrimination Suit Following Denial of Sovereign Immunity

On May 20, 2004, a Texas appellate court denied an appeal filed by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) after a district court denied a motion for summary judgment and another for sovereign immunity in a race discrimination suit. The original complaint was filed pursuant to the Texas Commission ...

$2.7 Million Settlement for Oklahoma Double Leg Amputee Jail Prisoner

On April 9, 2009, a federal district judge in Oklahoma signed a consent decree memorializing a $2.7 million settlement between an Oklahoma county and a former jail prisoner who suffered amputation of both legs while incarcerated at the jail.

Russell Mounger, a former prisoner at the Creek County Jail, was ...

PLN Prevails in Motion to Unseal Settlement in CCA Class Action FLSA Case

On August 28, 2009, the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas unsealed a settlement agreement in a nationwide class-action lawsuit against Corrections Corporation of America (CCA), the nation’s largest private prison firm. On July 27, 2009, Prison Legal News had filed a motion to intervene in the suit ...

Marin County Agrees to Pay $300,000 to Prisoner Severely Injured After Being Denied Psych Meds

On September 13, 2006, the County of Marin, California agreed to settle a lawsuit brought by a former Marin County prisoner who severely injured himself after being denied psychiatric medications.

Jacob Neitzel had a history of psychiatric problems before being booked into the Marin County Jail. Neitzel told jail officials ...

$200,000 Settlement in Sexual Harassment

Washington State’s King County paid $200,000 to settle the sexual harassment and hostile work environment claim of Jacqueline Galvan, who made claims relating to her employment at the Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention.

The lengthy complaint in civil court details events from July 1, 2001 until the complaint’s filing ...

Connecticut Settles Suit Over Conditions at Somers Facility; $190,000 in Fees and Costs Paid

In 1996, the parties in a class action suit over the conditions at the Connecticut Correctional Institution in Somers entered into a settlement agreement.

The settlement came after significant improvements were made at Somers over 16 years during the pendency of the suit and as a result of the court’s ...

$45,000 Awarded to Muslim Woman Forced to Remove Headscarf at California Jail

On October 8, 2008, the County of San Bernadino and Sheriff Gary Penrod agreed to settle a lawsuit alleging violations of the Religious Land Use and Institutionalized Persons Act of 2000 (RLUIPA) and the First Amendment.

Jameelah Medina, a practicing Muslim, was forced to remove her headscarf after being taken ...