Chelsi Moy published a wonderful story in the Missoulian about a beautiful woman who killed herself in the Uvalde jail. Read all of it here.

Patulla Williams had been dead for several hours before anyone thought to check on her. The 29-year-old was found d dead in a Texas jail cell, a television cord wrapped around her neck. Her death in December placed a tragic period at the end of a life plagued by trouble, a life that began in a foster home in western Montana.

Williams had struggled for decades with abuse from her early life, but she disguised it well, the hurt hidden behind a smile radiant enough to stop strangers in their tracks wherever she went. And Williams went a lot of places.

Via The Tennessean A federal judge has ruled in favor of a Nashville mother who triggered a national outcry after she was shackled during labor and after giving birth while in custody of the Davidson County Sheriff’s Office. U.S District Court Judge William Haynes Jr. will set a hearing for damages against Metro government and

Friday, September 24, 2010 9:43 AM by Matt Clarke, Prison Legal News There are two criminal justice systems in the United States. One is for people with wealth, fame or influence who can afford to hire top-notch attorneys and public relations firms, who make campaign contributions to sheriffs, legislators and other elected officials, and who

Prison Legal News is an independent national publication that covers both prison and jail news/issues. Some jail and prison administrators in Texas have tried to block inmates from receiving it, despite that being unconstitutional.

In 2007, PLN won a suit against Dallas County Jail which had tried to ban newspapers and magazines for inmates.

Prison Legal News has now teamed up with the Texas Civil Rights Project in an important new case described in the following press release.

Support the excellent work of TCRP for First Amendment Rights across Texas.

By Kevin Krause, The Dallas Morning News Dallas County commissioners voted Tuesday to settle two federal jail neglect lawsuits for close to a half-million dollars. County officials say the lawsuits are the last major legal claims related to prior conditions in the jail system, which were described a few years ago by federal investigators as

by Jerry Daniel Reed, ReporterNews.com Leaders of the Texas Jail Project on Tuesday delivered a harsh indictment of the Taylor County Jail, including a mock “Texas Hellhole Award.” The organization announced the designation at a news conference and rally at the war memorial north of the Taylor County Courthouse that attracted roughly two dozen people.

by Angela K. Brown, AP wire story At the Taylor County Jail in Abilene, some inmates say they’ve been strapped to chairs and left outside all day in the sun or rain. Others say guards sometimes sprayed pepper spray directly into their eyes. Another staffer allegedly asked a mentally ill inmate: “Why don’t you do

ATHENS — An investigation into the death of a Henderson County Jail inmate was turned over to the Texas Rangers following allegations of medical neglect and mistreatment at the hands of jail officials.
The sheriff’s office denies any wrongdoing.

By Julia Preston, New York Times It started when Juana Villegas, an illegal immigrant from Mexico who was nine months pregnant, was pulled over by a police officer in a Nashville suburb for a routine traffic violation. By the time Mrs. Villegas was released from the county jail six days later, she had gone through

By Carol Cavazos, CBS 11 Ten days into serving her sentence at the Tarrant County Jail, a Fort Worth woman died. Police say Adrienne Lemons was serving time for unpaid traffic tickets. The 35-year-old was rushed to John Peter Smith Hospital on June 13, where she later died. Lemons leaves behind a 3-year-old child. Lemons’