News Articles

This site contains over 2,000 news articles, legal briefs and publications related to for-profit companies that provide correctional services. Most of the content under the "Articles" tab below is from our Prison Legal News site. PLN, a monthly print publication, has been reporting on criminal justice-related issues, including prison privatization, since 1990. If you are seeking pleadings or court rulings in lawsuits and other legal proceedings involving private prison companies, search under the "Legal Briefs" tab. For reports, audits and other publications related to the private prison industry, search using the "Publications" tab.

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17 results

Unable to Post Bail, Detainee Starves to Death in Arkansas Jail

Article • April 26, 2024

Filed under: Private Contractors, Food, Water, Jail Specific, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Bail/Pretrial Release

Unable to Post Bail, Detainee Starves to Death in Arkansas Jail by David Reutter by David M. Reutter A lawsuit filed in federal court for the Western District of Arkansas on January 13, 2023, makes a stunning claim: That a man was left to starve to death in jail because …

Eighth Circuit Affirms $800,000 Award After Arkansas Jail Detainee’s Fatal Appendix Rupture

Article • March 1, 2024 • from PLN March, 2024

Filed under: Private Contractors, Failure to Treat, Jail Specific, Damages, Deliberate Indifference

Eighth Circuit Affirms $800,000 Award After Arkansas Jail Detainee’s Fatal Appendix Rupture by Matthew Clarke by Matthew Clarke On August 24, 2023, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit affirmed an $800,000 jury award against a contract doctor at an Arkansas jail, in a suit brought on behalf …

Almost $950,000 Paid by Inmate Services Corp. for Hellish Prisoner Transports

Article • February 1, 2024 • from PLN February, 2024

Filed under: Private Prisons, Transportation

Almost $950,000 Paid by Inmate Services Corp. for Hellish Prisoner Transports by David Reutter by David M. Reutter On September 30, 2023, the federal court for the Eastern District of Arkansas gave final approval to a settlement agreement under which for-profit prisoner transport firm Inmate Services Corp. (ISC) agreed to …

Eighth Circuit Reinstates Arkansas Prisoner’s Claim Over DOC’s Failure to Maintain Hearing Aids

Article • July 15, 2022 • from PLN July, 2022

Filed under: Correct Care Solutions, Hearing, Failure to Treat, Malpractice, Eighth Amendment, Americans with Disabilities Act

, accusing DOC and its privately contracted health care provider, Correct Care Solutions (CCS)—now known as Wellpath—of inadequate medical care, in violation of his rights under the Eighth ...

Arkansas: Private Prison Contractors Cited for Ethics Violations

Article • October 4, 2019

Filed under: Private Prisons, Misconduct/Corruption, Contractor Misconduct

Arkansas: Private Prison Contractors Cited for Ethics Violations by David M. Reutter by David M. Reutter The Arkansas Ethics Commission (AEC) issued letters of caution to four companies ...

Lawsuit Proceeds Over Death of Prisoner at Privately-Run Jail

Article • August 6, 2019 • from PLN August, 2019

Filed under: LaSalle Management Company, Wrongful Death, Medical Neglect/Malpractice

Lawsuit Proceeds Over Death of Prisoner at Privately-Run Jail by Scott Grammer by Scott Grammer Michael Todd Sabbie, 35, died on July 22, 2015 at the Bi-State Jail, which sits astraddle the border between Texas and Arkansas. He left behind four children. U.S. Magistrate Judge Caroline Craven, in a 169-page …

Mother of Prisoner Who Died at Texarkana Jail Challenges $200,000 Settlement; Nurse Pleads Guilty

Article • September 4, 2018 • from PLN September, 2018

Filed under: LaSalle Management Company, Diabetes, Failure to Treat, Settlements

, finding it was “not in the best interests of the Estate of Morgan Angerbauer.” The case remains pending in federal court. See: Houser v. LaSalle Management Company, LLC, U.S.D.C. (E.D. Texas ...

Lawsuit Against Private Prison Firm Over Prisoner’s Death at Texarkana Jail

Article • August 6, 2018 • from PLN August, 2018

Filed under: LaSalle Management Company, Medical Neglect/Malpractice

Lawsuit Against Private Prison Firm Over Prisoner’s Death at Texarkana Jail by Matthew Clarke by Matthew Clarke The family of a prisoner who died at the Bi-State Jail in Texarkana has filed ...

Eighth Circuit Upholds Denial of Qualified Immunity on Medical Claims Against CMS

Article • November 15, 2011 • from PLN November, 2011

Filed under: CMS, Systemic Medical Neglect, Skeletal Injury, Kidney, PLRA, Administrative Exhaustion (PLRA), Americans with Disabilities Act, Rehabilitation Act, Qualified Immunity

Eighth Circuit Upholds Denial of Qualified Immunity on Medical Claims Against CMS by On July 20, 2010, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed in part a district court’s denial ...

Prison Pays: Geo Corp Profits from Half-Way House Murder and Mayhem in Texas

Article • May 15, 2011 • from PLN May, 2011

Filed under: Classification, Work Release, Staff-Prisoner Assault, GEO Group/Wackenhut, Cornell Corrections, Contractor Misconduct, Government Misconduct, Escapes, Totality of Conditions, Failure to Protect (Wrongful Death), Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Murder by Parolees, Murder by Escapees, Juvenile Prisons

Prison Pays: Geo Corp Profits from Half-Way House Murder and Mayhem in Texas by Craig Malisow Despite a history of abuse and bad conditions, private-prison corporation GEO Group keeps getting ...

Sexual Abuse by Prison and Jail Staff Proves Persistent, Pandemic

Article • May 15, 2009 • from PLN May, 2009

Filed under: Staff-Prisoner Assault, Private Prisons, Corrections Corporation of America/CoreCivic, Cornell Corrections, GRW Corp., Staff-Prisoner Harassment, Guard Misconduct, DOC/BOP misconduct, Jail Misconduct, Criminal Prosecution

and Jacqueline Overturf, were being held at the Brush Correctional Facility, a private prison operated by GRW Corp., when they were sexually assaulted by prison guard Russell E. Rollison. They filed a lawsuit ...

Arkansas Law Discloses Legislators’ Business Ties to State

Article • July 15, 2008 • from PLN July, 2008

Filed under: CMS, DOC/BOP misconduct, Government Misconduct, Medication, Private Contractors, News, State Legislation

Pharmacy. Allcare provides prescription drugs and other medical services to prisoners in the Arkansas Department of Correc-tions through a subcontract with Correctional Medical Services (CMS). Malone ...

Mentally Ill Arkansas Prisoners Removed From Supermax, CMS Contract Renewed

Article • November 15, 2006 • from PLN November, 2006

Filed under: Private Prisons, CMS, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness)

Mentally Ill Arkansas Prisoners Removed From Supermax, CMS Contract Renewed by Michael Rigby On April 21, 2006, the Arkansas Board of Corrections approved a new policy designed to keep ...

Arkansas Considers Prison Rape Law, Problems Evident

Article • February 15, 2006 • from PLN February, 2006

Filed under: Sexual Assault, Staff-Prisoner Assault, Prisoner-Prisoner Assault, Cornell Corrections, Guard Misconduct, State Legislation

by Cornell Companies Inc., a private contractor. It's unknown if Berry has molested any of the children at those prisons. Sources: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, AP ...

DOJ Investigation: Conditions in Arkansas Prisons Unconstitutional

Article • May 15, 2004 • from PLN May, 2004

Filed under: Staff-Prisoner Assault, CMS, HIV/AIDS, Systemic Medical Neglect, Dental Care, Hepatitis, Conditions of Confinement, Totality of Conditions, Failure to Protect (General), Food, Sanitation, Restraints, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness)

of the prisons in July 2001 after refusing to pay for increased operating costsbut the problems persist. Medical Care Medical care at the prisons, which is provided by Correctional Medical Services (CMS ...

Suicides, Staff Negligence Plague Private Arkansas Juvenile Prison

Article • May 15, 2002 • from PLN May, 2002

Filed under: Private Prisons, Cornell Corrections, Fire Hazards, Staffing, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Suicides

Suicides, Staff Negligence Plague Private Arkansas Juvenile Prison by Lonnie Burton In October 2001, a just-completed state investigation concluded that Houston-based Cornell Company, the private firm that runs Arkansas's Alexander Youth Services Center, was negligent for failing to monitor an at-risk youth who committed suicide. The suicide was the second …

Court Supports Supervisory Liability Claim

Article • December 15, 1991 • from PLN December, 1991

Filed under: Private Prisons, Health Management Associates, Surgery, Hernias, Supervisory Liability, Contractor Liability

place immediately. The private company providing medical services to the prison, Health Management Associates (HMA), repeatedly put off the surgery until August, creating serious health problems ...