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Lobbyist Barney Bishop stood up before a Senate committee Wednesday and wrote the direct mail campaign ad every legislator fears. “You’re helping drug traffickers,” he said of the bill before the Senate Justice Appropriations Subcommittee that will give judges discretion when sentencing non-violent drug offenders to prison. “Do you know how much pot you’ve got […]

California prison inmates with hepatitis C are being denied curative treatment that relies on expensive new drugs, according to a class action lawsuit filed this week in federal court in Sacramento. The lawsuit was filed Tuesday by Sacramento attorneys Mark E. Merin and Fred J. Hiestand. The 18 prisoners named as plaintiffs all have hepatitis […]

If Danny Geiger were still alive, his mother believes he would be pleased with a settlement agreement filed this week by the state to improve mental health care within its prison system. But Geiger, a mentally ill man who hailed from Orange Park, died in 2016 after being abused by the prison system that had […]

Cautia Spencer was 13 years old when she picked up a checkbook she found alongside the road. At lunchtime, she attempted to buy a slice of pizza from the school cafeteria with one of the blank checks she had discovered. Cautia was placed in the custody of the Department of Juvenile Justice, but after disobeying rules […]

If Florida lawmakers don’t do anything policy wise soon, the state’s prison population could increase. That’s according to a report commissioned by the Florida Senate to promote the need for prison reform. The report is called “Data-Driven Solutions to Improve Florida’s Criminal Justice System.” Len Engel is the Director of Policy and Campaigns with the Crime and Justice Institute. […]

In a landmark ruling with far-reaching implications, U.S. District Judge Mark Walker has found Florida’s scheme for restoring the voting rights of felons unconstitutional. Walker, in a 43-page order issued today, found that Florida “automatically disenfranchises” any individual who has been convicted of a felony and wishes to vote. “Florida strips the right to vote […]

About $5 million separates the Florida House and Senate’s criminal justice budget. But, while there are some differences, there are areas where both chambers agree. The Senate’s budget proposal is just over $4.6 billion.  Sen. Jeff Brandes (R-St. Petersburg) chairs the Senate Budget committee that looks at criminal justice issues. He says the budget reflects […]

The family of Darren Rainey, the 50-year-old schizophrenic inmate whose barbaric shower death led to sweeping reforms in the Florida prison system, has settled a civil rights lawsuit against the Florida Department of Corrections, the Miami Herald has learned. The settlement notice, filed in federal court in Miami last week, did not disclose the amount […]

For the first time in Florida history, voters will decide whether to grant the right to vote to an estimated 1.5 million convicted felons. Secretary of State Ken Detzner announced Tuesday that the proposal gained the required 766,000 valid signatures to get on the November ballot. The state elections website showed 799,278 valid signatures. It […]

More inmates died in Florida prisons last year than in any other year on record, leaving the state scrambling to identify causes and find solutions. The tally, 428 inmate deaths in 2017, was released late Friday by the Florida Department of Corrections and showed a 20 percent increase over previous years. The inmates who died […]