Prisoners’ Rights
State of Michigan Sues Incarcerated Author in Attempt to Force Him to Pay for His Own Incarceration
Curtis Dawkins published a collection of short stories in 2016 to great critical acclaim. The Graybar Hotel was picked up by Scribner, one of the most well-known and respected publishing houses in the country, and sales have been brisk. Dawkins, who earned his MFA from Western Michigan University, seemed to be off to a great…
Read MoreNew Charges Against Inmate-Author: An Attempt to Muzzle Him?
By Kamea Zelisko How about these for credentials for an authority on prison issues: authoring a handbook on prison life, three books on subjects examining ways education can benefit inmates, plus a steady stream of articles in national magazines, newspapers and blogs on a wide range of legal and other incarceration-related topics. No less…
Read MoreMilwaukee Jail Under Fire for Deaths, Civil Rights Abuses
By Christopher Zoukis At least four people, including a newborn, have died in Wisconsin’s Milwaukee County Jail since April 2016. The facility, run by Sheriff David A. Clarke, Jr., houses about 950 detainees daily. The string of deaths has raised concerns about conditions at the jail, including whether adequate medical care is being provided. The…
Read MoreSolitary Confinement Lawsuit Dismissed
The Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has dealt a blow to the constitutional rights of imprisoned writers. On December 11, 2012, after serving a lengthy sentence for arson-related crimes in connection with environmental activism, Daniel McGowan was released to the Brooklyn House Residential Reentry Center (RRC) to serve the remainder of his sentence.…
Read MoreDOJ Investigates Possible Prisoners’ Rights Violations in Alabama
By Christopher Zoukis The Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has launched a statewide probe on whether conditions in Alabama’s 14 prisons for men violate the rights of inmates. The investigation is under the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act, which allows action against jails or prisons that show patterns or…
Read MoreLawsuit upholds atrocity of forcing inmates to drink tainted water
By Christopher Zoukis After filing a lawsuit in 2014, 4 prisoners at Wallace Pack Unit, Navasota, Tex., will hopefully be feeling some relief after US District Judge Keith Ellison recently gave the prison 15 days to replace the water supply. However, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice says it plans to appeal the ruling, with…
Read MoreWhen will we finally hit the tipping point in transgender prisoner rights?
By Christopher Zoukis This past week, a UK transgender woman incarcerated in a men’s prison in Bath, took her life. The warning signs from Vicky Thompson were far from subtle: she had repeatedly told family, friends, and prison officials that she would kill herself were she to find herself in a men’s prison. Yet…
Read MoreNew Zealand Prisoners in the Information Age: NZ's Newest Prison Permits Inmates to Use Cell Phones, Computers, and Tablets
By Christopher Zoukis Excerpt from original article published in The Huffington Post on May 27, 2015. In an era where American prison administrators are losing the battle against illicit cell phone usage in our nation’s prisons and lawmakers are creating draconian criminal statues to punish offenders, New Zealand’s newest prison, the high-security Auckland South Corrections Facility…
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