Justice Newzzz
CO Gov. commutes truckers sentence; judge rules again that AL DOC guilty of inadequate mental health care for inmates; 4 philly prisoners died in two weeks — your weekly Justice News
out west: Gov. Polis bowed to public opinion and national outcry and reduced Aguilera-Mederos sentence from 110 years to 10. (We don’t love this article due to it’s dehumanizing voice, but it covers how there is no reasoning behind governor clemencies accept whim of desire and no official consistent record. We’ve featured a woman searching for clemency repeatedly denied by Colorado governors). The Denver Post (Dec. 30, 2021)
tiny but loud: a small group of scientists, lawyers, physicians and other police experts are used to testify to excuse law enforcement of deaths, according to a review by the NYT of hundreds of research papers, more than 25,000 pages of court documents and interviews with nearly three dozen people. New York Times (Dec. 26, 2021)
federal steps in: “Michigan Corrections Department downplays its own report on needed prison repairs.” Detroit Free Press (Dec. 23, 2021)
a terrible end to a bad year: “Four Philly prisoners died in two weeks, capping a tumultuous and deadly year: It is the highest mortality rate in recent memory at jails that have been beset, over the past year, by violence, riots, severe staff shortages, a federal lawsuit and a grand jury investigation.” Philadelphia Inquire (Dec. 27, 2021)
never released: They went to jail and never returned: the story of the 15 that never made it out of Rikers. New York Magazine (Dec. 27, 2021)
for whatever it’s worth, reinforced: An Alabama judge ruled again in Braggs v. Dunn, after a similar ruling four years ago, that Alabama prisons must increase staffing levels to prevent increased violence and suicide.
ADOC does not have enough correctional staff to provide constitutionally adequate mental-health care to prisoners who need it. AP (Dec. 27, 2021)
never to emerge: 17-year-old Cedric Lofton went to juvenile jail where he was handcuffed on his stomach and his heart and breathing stopped. He died two days later at a hospital. An autopsy report ruled his death a homicide - is it another George Floyd? AP (Dec. 27, 2021)
just another: Valentina Orellana-Peralta, shot by LAPD in December was one of five killings in nine days last month - a violent end to a year of scandals. The Guardian (Dec. 30, 2021)
deadly record: Three inquires later and a fourth underway, a New York state trooper was honored as ‘officer of the year’ after killing a suicidal man and went on to kill three more people in rural areas with low rates of crime. New York Times (Dec. 30, 2021)
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