National Roundup

New Mexico
State signs settlement on living conditions for inmates
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A federal judge approved a preliminary settlement agreement Wednesday on living conditions for prison inmates across New Mexico that would resolve long-running litigation shaped by the aftermath of deadly 1980 riots at the state penitentiary.

First-year Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham said the agreement would help ensure constitutional protections for humane treatment for inmates, relieve future litigation costs and give the state flexibility in developing new policies.

Under the agreement, the Corrections Department has agreed to transfer hundreds of inmates among facilities to ensure adequate individual living space and plans to take new steps toward increasing staffing at prisons.

Once the state has complied with specific settlement terms for six months, court oversight can be suspended.

The agreement would end the so-called Duran consent decree that established requirements for conditions within the state corrections system. The litigation dates back to a lawsuit filed in 1977 that became a vehicle to ensure basic living conditions in prison. Lead plaintiff Dwight Duran has since died.

Severe crowding was cited as a major contributor to the riot at the state penitentiary outside Santa Fe in which 33 inmates died.

In April, Lujan Grisham’s administration reached a settlement in the long-running class action Jackson lawsuit over the rights of developmentally and intellectually disabled individuals.

Among many provisions, the Duran decree prohibited the practice of “double-celling” two or more inmates in a space intended for one.

The new settlement upholds that standard and says an inmate needs at least 50 square feet (5 square meters) of combined living and sleeping space, not including bathrooms and dayrooms.

In one instance, at the Springer Correctional Center, the top population capacity will decrease from 437 inmates to 308.

Other provisions provide guarantees to safe drinking water if local supplies are suspect, limits on temporarily housing inmates in dayrooms, and protections from retribution by officials for those who report rape in prison.

Also under the agreement, recruiting efforts for prison staff will include hiring fairs, and the state plans to reconsider physical fitness requirements for prison staff to make more candidates eligible for employment.

Florida
Parents, county clash in court over shootings
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Parents whose children were killed or wounded during last year’s Parkland high school massacre asked the Florida Supreme Court on Wednesday to rule that each pull of the trigger was a separate occurrence for which the Broward County School Board should be held liable.

But a lawyer for the school board told the court the Feb. 14, 2018, shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School was one “unfortunate” incident that left 17 students and staff dead and 17 people injured.

The court’s ruling could make a huge difference in the amount of the school board’s potential liability.

The parents hope not to be constrained by a state law that caps government agencies’ liability in civil lawsuits at $200,000 per individual and $300,000 per incident. Any jury award above that amount has to be approved by the Legislature and governor.

“This all happened in a matter of a few minutes, where one gunman came onto the campus,” said Eugene Pettis, a lawyer for the school board. “We have a nightmare of six minutes, a contiguous, continuous action that occurred.”

After a trial judge agreed with the Broward School Board, an appeals court asked the Supreme Court to answer the question of whether each victim represents a separate occurrence.

Fred Guttenberg, whose 14-year-old daughter Jaime was killed in the shooting, was angered by the school board’s arguments.

“I am so frustrated by the school district that was tasked with protecting my child and the 16 others who died and who failed and failed and failed,” Guttenberg said on the steps of the courthouse. “When that attorney (Pettis) kept on saying the unfortunate incident on February 14th, my blood was boiling, and it only reinforces how badly they still don’t get it.”

After the proceedings, Pettis said the cap that protects government agencies was never intended to address an event like the Parkland shooting, saying it’s “totally inadequate for these types of tragedies.” Instead, he said the Legislature should create a victims compensation fund.

“This case can’t be resolved on a local level, this case needs to be resolved with our Legislature stepping in and creating some type of claims process. The $300,000, no matter how we cut it up, obviously is wholly insufficient,” Pettis said.

Alabama
Man goes free after resentencing for $50 robbery
BESSEMER, Ala. (AP) — An Alabama man sentenced to life in prison for stealing $50.75 will have his time cut short after being resentenced to time served.

News outlets report 58-year-old Alvin Kennard was ordered to be released from prison Wednesday after serving 36 years and is set to be processed out by the Alabama Department of Corrections. It’s unclear when Kennard will be released.

Court records say Kennard was sentenced to life in 1983 under Alabama’s Habitual Felony Offender Act for stealing from a bakery. Kennard was previously charged with burglary and grand larceny, making him eligible to be sentenced under the act.

Kennard’s attorney Carla Crowder argued that he would’ve received a 20-year max sentence under new sentencing guidelines.

Kennard says he’ll live with family in Bessemer and work in carpentry.


Maryland
Man carrying honey, not meth, jailed for months
ANNE ARUNDEL, Md. (AP) — A Maryland man visiting Jamaica decided to bring back some honey from his favorite roadside stand and was jailed for months on the false assumption he was smuggling methamphetamine.

News outlets report Leon Haughton was returning home from a family visit last Christmas when a drug-sniffing dog alerted to his bag at Baltimore’s airport. He figures it was the fast-food leftovers he was carrying.

He was arrested and remained jailed despite being granted work release, even after a Maryland state lab, weeks later, found no evidence of drugs in the honey. A follow-up test also was negative.

But because Haughton holds a green-card, it was either jail or potential deportation until his Immigration and Customs En­force­ment detainer was removed. He spent 82 days behind bars for carrying honey.