Prisoners Fight Pennsylvania for Denying Chance at Parole
Six so-called “death by incarceration” inmates went to court Wednesday to challenge Pennsylvania’s policy of denying parole to those sentenced to life in prison for felony murder.
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California Parole Board Accused of Withholding Data From Researchers
California prison administrators refuse to turn over public data on parole candidates because they disagree with a researcher’s prior findings of racial disparities in parole board decisions, according to a lawsuit filed Wednesday.
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Report Details Abuse and Medical Neglect at Immigrant Detention Centers
A report released Thursday by immigration watchdogs shines an unflattering light on the Trump administration’s treatment of asylum seekers and detainees, finding a lack of adequate medical care and oversight at detention centers as the number of facilities and detainees grows.
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Supreme Court Takes Up Teen’s Life-Without-Parole Case
Taking up the case of a 15-year-old who killed his grandfather, the Supreme Court agreed Monday to decide whether a juvenile must be ruled “permanently incorrigible” to get a life sentence without parole.
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Virginia Law Spurs Dismissal of Appeal in DC Sniper Case
Virginia’s attorney general has agreed to dismiss an appeal of the life sentence for the then-teenage accomplice in the 2002 D.C. sniper shootings following the passage of a state law updating sentencing rules.
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Judge: Mississippi Parole Officers ‘Underpaid & Overworked’
As Mississippi lawmakers seek ways to improve a prison system shaken by recent deadly violence, a related problem is looming: A judge said Tuesday that parole officers are “woefully underpaid and overworked.”
Read moreBattered & Bruised
A family claims Utah Probation and Parole officers swarmed into their house looking for a man they knew was not there, beat family members without reason and stole $7,000 from the house, in federal court.
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Michael Brodheim, a graduate student in public administration, sued the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation for information on the racial makeup of prisoners who apply for parole, in San Francisco Superior Court.
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A federal class action filed Wednesday claims that California has failed to carry out a package of reforms passed in 2017 that utilized parole consideration for those convicted of nonviolent crimes.
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Appeals Court Rules California Must Restructure Parole Process
California’s struggle to implement sweeping criminal justice reforms continued Tuesday as a state appeals court ruled that corrections officials’ handling of early parole requests by inmates doing time for nonviolent crimes violates a 2016 voter-approved measure.
Read moreVote Suppression
The Community Success Initiative and the NAACP sued North Carolina in Wake County Court, claiming it is unconstitutionally preventing more than 70,000 citizens from voting until they are “unconditionally discharged” from probation, parole or a suspended sentence.
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A parolee claims her parole agent in Sacramento sexually assaulted her repeatedly under threat of sending her back to prison if she refused, in federal court.
Read moreVan Houten Parole
California’s Second Appellate District denied the habeas petition of convicted Manson Family murderer Leslie Van Houten on Friday, finding then-Gov. Jerry Brown’s decision to reverse a 2017 grant of parole because Van Houten hasn’t taken enough responsibility for her crimes is supported by evidence in the record.
Read moreBill to Restore Vote to California Parolees Clears Assembly Hurdle
Thousands of parolees could regain the right to vote under a criminal-justice bill approved Thursday by California lawmakers.
Read moreFeds Blocked From Denying Parole to All Asylum Seekers
A federal judge ruled Thursday that Immigration and Customs Enforcement must make parole decisions on an individual basis for immigrants seeking asylum instead of issuing blanket denials.
Read moreAttorney Fees
A federal judge affirmed a woman is entitled to $70,000 in attorney fees in addition to $350,000 in damages on her claims of harassment and false reporting by her drug court parole officer.
Read moreParole of Brink’s Robbery Figure Spurs Suit by Victims
Challenging last week’s release of former Weather Underground activist Judith Clark, two victims of the fatal 1981 Brink’s armored-van robbery for which Clark drove the getaway car brought a lawsuit Monday claiming the vote rested on a conflict of interest.
Read moreInmate at Center of Landmark Juvenile Case Loses Parole Bid
A Louisiana inmate whose case led to a landmark Supreme Court ruling extending the hope of freedom to juvenile offenders sentenced to life without the possibility of parole was again denied that freedom on Thursday after more than five decades in prison.
Read moreTupac’s Stepdad
A federal judge on Thursday tossed a civil rights class action brought by late rapper Tupac Shakur’s stepfather against the Federal Bureau of Prisons, finding a habeas corpus petition, not a class action, is the vehicle to address claims of sham parole hearings and rights violations.
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