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Zieser v. Bearden, MO, Complaint, Sexual Assault, 2018

Brief • July 2, 2018

Filed under: Sexual Assault

Zieser v. Bearden, MO, Complaint, Sexual Assault, 2018 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI Ashley Marie Olsen Zieser, ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) Plaintiff, v. EDWARD BEARDEN, VEVIA STURM, JOHN OR JANE DOE #1, and …

Betz v. Bearden, MO, Complaint, Sexual Assault, 2018

Brief • June 5, 2018

Betz v. Bearden, MO, Complaint, Sexual Assault, 2018 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI LYNNSEY BETZ, ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) Plaintiff, v. EDWARD BEARDEN, VEVIA STURM, JOHN OR JANE DOE #1, and JOHN OR …

$600,000 Awarded Missouri Man in Legal Malpractice Verdict After 17 Years in Prison

Article • June 1, 2018

Filed under: Attorneys, Public Defenders

$600,000 Awarded Missouri Man in Legal Malpractice Verdict After 17 Years in Prison by Monte McCoin by Monte McCoin In May 2018, jurors in a Newton County Circuit courtroom awarded $600,000 to a man who spent 17 years in a Missouri prison before his conviction was overturned by that state’s …

Vera Institute of Justice--The New Dynamics of Mass Incarceration Report, 2018

Publication • June 1, 2018

Filed under: Prison Reform, Criminal justice system reform, Crime/Demographics, Statistics/Trends, Census, Overcrowding, Jail Specific, Rural Prisons, Bail, Bail Bonds, Mental Health, Drug Treatment/Rehab

Vera Institute of Justice--The New Dynamics of Mass Incarceration Report, 2018 The New Dynamics of Mass Incarceration Jacob Kang-Brown, Oliver Hinds, Jasmine Heiss, and Olive Lu June 2018 From The Director The turn of the century marked a new direction for the nation’s prisons and jails: after three decades of …

Families Against Mandatory Minimums: Everywhere and Nowhere -- Compassionate Release in the States, 2018

Publication • June 1, 2018

Filed under: Geriatric Classification, Prison Reform, Criminal justice system reform, Medical, Conditions of Confinement, Release and Reentry, Parole, Rehabilitation Act, Mental Health

Families Against Mandatory Minimums: Everywhere and Nowhere -- Compassionate Release in the States, 2018 Everywhere and Nowhere Compassionate Release in the States By Mary Price June 2018 1 About the Author Mary Price is general counsel of Families Against Mandatory Minimums (FAMM). She directs the FAMM Litigation Project and advocates …

Keil v. MHM Services, INC, MO, Complaint, Sexual Assault, 2018

Brief • May 29, 2018

Filed under: Sexual Assault

Keil v. MHM Services, INC, MO, Complaint, Sexual Assault, 2018 IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI KAREN BACKUES KEIL, ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) Plaintiff, v. MHM SERVICES, INC., a Virginia Corporation, …

NY petition for approval to transfer control of Inmate Calling Solutions, LLC d/b/a ICSolutions to Securus Technologies, Inc., 2018

Publication • May 17, 2018

Filed under: Conditions of Confinement, Telephones, Telephone Access, Telephone Rates

NY petition for approval to transfer control of Inmate Calling Solutions, LLC d/b/a ICSolutions to Securus Technologies, Inc., 2018 BEFORE THE NEW YORK PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION Joint Petition of TKC Holdings, Inc., Inmate Calling Solutions, LLC d/b/a ICSolutions Matter/Case No. - - - - - and Securus Technologies, Inc. for …

Jury Awards Missouri Man $35,000 for Traffic Stop Assault

Article • May 7, 2018

Filed under: Excessive Force, Pepper Spray/Tear Gas, Excessive Force (Police)

Jury Awards Missouri Man $35,000 for Traffic Stop Assault by Christopher Zoukis by Christopher Zoukis   A federal jury found that Dunklin County, Missouri, deputies used excessive force against a man who ran a stop sign, and awarded him $35,000.      On June 11, 2006, Herman Taylor was pulled over …

The Campaign to Close the Workhouse and Promote a New Vision for St. Louis, 2018

Publication • March 20, 2018

Filed under: Failure to Treat, Totality of Conditions, Overcrowding, Exposure to Cold, Jail Specific, Vermin, Exposure to Heat, Bail, Bail Bonds, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness)

The Campaign to Close the Workhouse and Promote a New Vision for St. Louis, 2018 -EXECUTIVE SUMMARY- The City of St. Louis condemns hundreds of mostly poor and Black people to suffer in unspeakably hellish and inhumane conditions at the “Workhouse,” officially known as the Medium Security Institution. Over 95% …

Lack of Criminal Intent: Missouri Supreme Acquits on Drug Possession Charge

Article • March 16, 2018 • from CLN April, 2018

Filed under: Searches, War on Drugs, Criminal Procedure

Lack of Criminal Intent: Missouri Supreme Acquits on Drug Possession Charge by Suzanne Bring by Suzanne Bring The Missouri Supreme Court held that there was insufficient evidence to convict the defendant of possession of meth because her mere presence at a residence in which meth was discovered, without more, does …

$4.8 Million Settles Kansas City Police Shooting

Article • March 16, 2018 • from CLN April, 2018

Filed under: Police Misconduct

$4.8 Million Settles Kansas City Police Shooting by Matthew Clarke by Matt Clarke In September 2017, the terms of a $4.8 million confidential settlement between the Kansas City Police Department and an unarmed man whom police officers shot 20 times were made public. The man had sued police for using …

$25,000 Jury Award in Federal Civil Rights Case

Article • March 2, 2018

Filed under: Excessive Force (Police), 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights

$25,000 Jury Award in Federal Civil Rights Case by Christopher Zoukis by Christopher Zoukis A federal civil rights action alleging excessive force during arrest has resulted in a $25,000 jury verdict. The April 5, 2007 verdict provided $5,000 in compensatory damages and $20,000 in punitive damages against several officers. Craig …

Overworked Missouri Public Defenders Fear Suspensions and Firing

Article • February 16, 2018 • from CLN March, 2018

Filed under: Public Defenders

Overworked Missouri Public Defenders Fear Suspensions and Firing by Mark Wilson by Mark Wilson "They just demonstrated they’re going to prosecute us, and the Supreme Court just demonstrated that they’re going to punish us,” said Michael Barrett, director of the Missouri public defender system, in response to the suspension of …

Eighth Circuit Holds Missouri Police Not Entitled to Immunity in Wrongful Death Suit

Article • January 16, 2018

Filed under: Summary Judgment, Qualified Immunity, Sovereign Immunity, Wrongful Death, Police--Excessive Force

Eighth Circuit Holds Missouri Police Not Entitled to Immunity in Wrongful Death Suit by Edward Lyon by Edward Lyon Kansas City policemen Shawn Todd and David Epperson responded to a burglary call at a vacant house. At the house Epperson covered the front, while Todd went to the rear. Todd …

Eighth Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Excessive Force Case

Article • December 27, 2017

Filed under: Drug/Alcohol Withdrawal, Diabetes, Excessive Force (Police)

Eighth Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Excessive Force Case by Christopher Zoukis by Christopher Zoukis The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a civil rights claim brought against the Jefferson County, Missouri Sheriff's Department by a man beaten during a traffic stop. Edward C. …

Eighth Circuit Reverses Summary Judgment on Ferguson Protestor’s Excessive Force Claim

Article • December 19, 2017 • from CLN January, 2018

Filed under: Summary Judgment, Excessive Force (Police)

Eighth Circuit Reverses Summary Judgment on Ferguson Protestor’s Excessive Force Claim by Mark Wilson by Mark Wilson The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit reversed summary judgment in favor of four police officers on an excessive force claim while arresting protestors of the Michael Brown police shooting death. …

Eighth Circuit Reverses Summary Judgment in Deadly Excessive Force Claim Because Reasonableness of Officers’ Actions Not Conclusively Established

Article • December 19, 2017

Filed under: Police Misconduct, Excessive Force, Summary Judgment, Excessive Force (Wrongful Death), Police

Eighth Circuit Reverses Summary Judgment in Deadly Excessive Force Claim Because Reasonableness of Officers’ Actions Not Conclusively Established by David Reutter by David Reutter The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit reversed the grant of summary judgment on an excessive force claim in which police officers shot a …

Efforts to End “Scourge of Money Bail” Meeting with Success

Article • December 12, 2017

Filed under: Bail, Bail Bonds

Efforts to End “Scourge of Money Bail” Meeting with Success by David Reutter By David M. Reutter The initiative by Equal Justice Under Law to end the incarceration pending trial of persons too poor to post bail is reaping positive outcomes.  Each day, there are about 500,00 human beings who …

Missouri’s Release of Pot Dealer Doing LWOP Gives Hope to Nonviolent Drug Offenders Incarcerated Nationwide

Article • November 28, 2017

Filed under: War on Drugs, Sentencing, Parole

Missouri’s Release of Pot Dealer Doing LWOP Gives Hope to Nonviolent Drug Offenders Incarcerated Nationwide by Joe Watson By Joe Watson Jeff Mizanskey, a 62-year-old Missouri state prisoner serving life without parole (LWOP) on a nonviolent drug conviction, was released on Sept, 2, 2015, eliciting cautious optimism that thousands like …

Missouri Supreme Court Holds Probation Revocation for Nonpayment of Court Costs Unconstitutional

Article • November 16, 2017 • from CLN December, 2017

Filed under: Filing Fees, Probation, Bond Fees, Booking Fees

Missouri Supreme Court Holds Probation Revocation for Nonpayment of Court Costs Unconstitutional by Mark Wilson by Mark Wilson The Missouri Supreme Court sitting en banc ruled that a sentencing court improperly revoked a defendant’s probation for failing to pay court costs without first inquiring into the reasons for his failure …