prison

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Family of Pussy Riot Member Says She's Cut Off

Husband hasn't heard from her in nearly 2 weeks since transfer

(Newser) - The family of jailed Pussy Riot member Nadezhda Tolokonnikova accuse Russian authorities of trying to cut her off from them and the outside world, reports BuzzFeed . Tolokonnikova's husband says he hasn't had any contact with his wife since she got shipped off by train to a new prison...

How 2 Killers Changed America's Prisons Forever

The Marion prison lockdown paved way for today's Supermax facilities

(Newser) - These days, nearly every state in America has a Supermax facility, places where killers and terrorists are kept in isolated cells almost constantly, in conditions that have sparked lawsuits and raised the ire of groups like Human Rights Watch. How did it get this way? It all started with two...

&#39;Prison Angel&#39; Nun Dead at 86
 'Prison Angel' Nun Dead at 86 
obituary
Oct 18, 2013 11:08 AM CDT

'Prison Angel' Nun Dead at 86

California native spent decades living in Tijiuana prison

(Newser) - Sister Antonia Brenner was raised in Beverly Hills, with people like Cary Grant for neighbors. But as an adult she spent more than three decades living, by choice, in a Tijuana prison cell, surrounded by the convicts she ministered to. Inmates and guards alike referred to Sister Brenner as the...

Ex-Qwest CEO Became BFFs With Drug Offenders in Prison

Paid other inmates to clean his cell with cans of tuna

(Newser) - Former Qwest CEO Joseph Nacchio has emerged from his 54-month prison stint a changed man. The 64-year-old is thinner, healthier, and stronger, thanks to lifting weights and running; he's tanned, shaved his head, and grown a goatee; and his new best friends are a couple of drug offenders named...

Japan Prison Unveils Cuddly New Mascot

Institution decides its image needs softening

(Newser) - A Japanese prison that wants to be known as more than just a forbidding place of punishment has decided to soften its image with a cuddly mascot. The debut of "Katakkuri-chan"—a 6-foot-6 figure in a warden's uniform with a huge purple flower for hair—helped draw...

Katie Beers' Captor Found Dead in Prison Cell

John Esposito's death doesn't appear suspicious

(Newser) - Another kidnapper is dead : John Esposito, the man convicted of holding a 10-year-old girl prisoner for 17 days in a suburban New York dungeon, was found dead in his Sing Sing prison cell last night, the state Department of Corrections said today. The death is under investigation but does not...

Orange Is the New Black Writer: Prison Plan Is Dumb

Piper Kerman says shipping female inmates across country is misguided

(Newser) - Piper Kerman might be one of the most popular ex-cons in the nation right now, thanks to Orange is the New Black, the Netflix series based on her memoir of prison life. Now that she's on the outside and working as a prisoners' advocate, Kerman is putting that clout...

Holder to Ax 'Draconian' Drug Sentences

For low-level offenders not associated with gangs or drug rings

(Newser) - Eric Holder is set to today to reveal what the Washington Post is calling the planned "cornerstone of the rest of his tenure": a revamp of federal prison policy. And one part of the overhaul—a big change to sentencing for low-level drug offenders—is getting a great deal...

OJ: I'm the Best Prisoner They Ever Had

Argues good behavior at parole hearing

(Newser) - After five years behind bars, OJ Simpson has had enough. In front of a parole board yesterday, Simpson argued for early release from prison, where he's serving a 33-year sentence for his conviction on a dozen charges stemming from an incident in which he said he "was trying...

Take It From an Ex-Con: Solitary Confinement Is Cruel

California's striking inmates deserve our attention: Wilbert Rideau

(Newser) - At last count, about 2,500 inmates in California were still taking part in a hunger strike that began on July 8. If corrections officials were smart, they'd pay careful attention to the inmates' complaints, writes Wilbert Rideau in the New York Times . The main one is that prisons...

240 Inmates Escape in Indonesia Prison Riot

Most still on the loose after uprising that killed 5

(Newser) - Nearly 200 prisoners—and five convicted terrorists—may be roaming the streets of Indonesia today, after a deadly prison riot over a broken water supply led to a mass breakout. Five people were killed—two guards and three prisoners—as inmates at the maximum-security Tanjung Gusta facility in Medan lit...

Calif. Prisons Sterilized Women Without State OK

148 had procedure between 2006 and 2010: report

(Newser) - The California prison system had at least 148 women sterilized between 2006 and 2010—without the state signing off on the move. Another 100 women may have faced the same fate since the 1990s, the Center for Investigative Reporting finds, based on state records and interviews. The inmates were pregnant...

Colo. Fire Forces Evacuation of 900 Prisoners

4 blazes have destroyed dozens of homes

(Newser) - Wildfires are raging in Colorado, and one of them caused more than 900 prisoners to be evacuated from a state prison early today. The medium- and low-risk prisoners were taken by bus to other prisons, a spokesperson tells the AP . The fire hasn't actually reached the Colorado Territorial Correctional...

Prison Busts Cat on Criminal Mission

Feline caught with cargo of phones, chargers

(Newser) - Inmates at Russia's prisons have been known to bribe guards to obtain cellphones. But using cats as couriers? Guards patrolling a prison colony 600 miles north of Moscow saw a feline on the fence and it seemed to be carrying something. On a closer look, they found a few...

Joran Van der Sloot Is Getting Married

Conjugal visitor to wed convicted killer

(Newser) - Well, it's official: There really is someone for everyone, even literal lady killer Joran Van der Sloot. The convicted killer and alleged extortionist intends to get married next month in the Peruvian prison where he's serving a 28-year sentence, his lawyer, Maximo Altez, has announced. "He wants...

NJ Sent $24M in Benefits— to Prisoners

Agencies didn't check databases to see if recipients were in prison

(Newser) - New Jersey sent nearly $24 million in taxpayer money to prisoners in the form of unemployment, welfare, pension, and other benefits, reports the New York Times . An audit released yesterday uncovered 20,000 prisoners who received benefit money between July 2009 and April 2011, including tales such as one man...

Guy Born in Jail Bails Out His Mom, 19 Years Later

Indian man saves enough money to hire a lawyer

(Newser) - Vijai Kumari was pregnant when she went to jail in India 19 years ago, convicted—she says wrongfully—of murder. Her son Kanhaiya was born after she'd been imprisoned four months, and she eventually sent him away to be raised in various juvenile homes, she says: "It was...

Oops: Colorado Releases Hundreds of Prisoners Early

Court deciding who should go back to jail

(Newser) - Hundreds of Colorado inmates have gotten early tickets out of the big house thanks to clerical errors, an audit by the state's Department of Corrections has revealed. Judges are currently looking over the cases to determine how many of the freed convicts should be locked back up, the Denver ...

Blame Union Politics for Baltimore's Jail Scandal

Charles Lane: New law gives guards way too much cover

(Newser) - How on earth did things get so bad at the Baltimore City Detention Center that at least 13 female guards allegedly helped gang bangers sell drugs behind bars and even had their kids? At the Washington Post , Charles Lane thinks a good part of the blame lies with a too-powerful...

Hot on Yelp: Prison Reviews
 Hot on Yelp: 
 Prison Reviews 
Apr 29, 2013 12:59 PM CDT

Hot on Yelp: Prison Reviews

But amusing trend underscores serious problem

(Newser) - Planning on committing a crime in the near future? You might want to check Yelp first and make sure you do so in a county that has a nice jail. Yes, prison reviews are increasingly popular on Yelp, with reviewers commenting on everything from cleanliness and food quality to security...

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