Outspoken Maine prisoner told to ‘cease and desist’
A convicted murderer and advocate for prison reforms is ordered to curb his frequent newspaper submissions.
Get out of jail free? Task force eyes changes to bail laws
AUGUSTA, Maine — In an effort to help eliminate overcrowding in the county jails, a task force has recommended changes to the state’s bail laws and a study that could lead to the elimination of bail in most cases.
Maine Voices: Criminal justice system needs fix
Sen. Susan Collins should join the bipartisan effort to pass the Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act.
Violent Riverview patient to be treated at South Carolina facility
Maine's forensic hospital is not equipped to deal with Anthony Reed's level of dangerousness, the medical director testified Monday.
Maine Voices: Allow inmates the power of a pen
BELFAST — The Maine Department of Corrections is seeking public comments through Nov. 6 on a revised disciplinary policy that includes, among other violations, prohibitions against writing: writing to a pen pal, writing via a blog that a friend on the outside helps maintain or writing through any other media outlet. I hope my fellow Mainers will join me in opposing this revision.
Maine needs a reason to restrict prisoner communications. So far, there isn’t any.
The most pressing question surrounding proposed prisoner discipline rule changes from the Maine Department of Corrections comes down to one word: Why? Why are they needed? Why is the department proposing them now? The questions are especially relevant to restrictions on prisoner communications, which are protected by the First Amendment.
Call for state forensic hospital triggers partisan finger-pointing
AUGUSTA, Maine — A legal dispute over where a severely mentally ill patient who twice attacked staff members at Riverview Psychiatric Center belongs has reignited a long-standing debate about whether Maine needs to open a new high-security psychiatric hospital and if so, who should run it.
DOC may prohibit several forms of prisoner communication
AUGUSTA, Maine —
Maine’s Department of Corrections wants to prohibit certain forms of communication between prison inmates and outsiders.
Opponents voice objections to proposed rules that could restrict Maine inmates’ speech
Many at Monday's hearing on the Maine Department of Corrections proposal said the proposal is too vague, would cause discipline problems at state prisons, and would damage efforts to rehabilitate prisoners.
Our View: Proposed inmate contact rules speak poorly of Maine corrections system
The communications limits violate free-speech rights and contradict practices shown to reduce the risk of recidivism.
Proposed rules for Maine prison inmates may restrict outside communication
The new rules are vaguely written, and the Department of Corrections has explained little about the draft discipline policy that it intends to air at a public hearing Monday.
Kennebec County Sheriff Randall Liberty named warden of Maine State Prison
Liberty has worked in law enforcement for 33 years and has served in the military.
Current, former York County corrections officers indicted
ALFRED, Maine —
Seven current and former corrections officers at the York County Jail have been indicted, according to Sheriff Maurice Ouellette.
The Mentally Ill, Behind Bars
Mayor Bill de Blasio and his new correction commissioner, Joseph Ponte, have inherited a city jail system in which nearly 40 percent of the 12,000 inmates have mental illnesses — up from about a quarter just seven years ago. Yet despite the stark shift, the system has not been redesigned to serve the complex needs of inmates with mental illnesses.
Ex-Riverview patient wants to leave prison, return to hospital
Michael James appealed his discharge from the state forensic hospital and on Wednesday asked the state's highest court to return him there.
Horror at Rikers Island and what a former LePage appointee can do about it
On Monday, The New York Times published a damning investigative report about the treatment of inmates at the hands of corrections officers at Rikers Island in New York. Over the course of 11 months last year, 129 inmates suffered injuries beyond the capacity of the jail’s doctors to treat in-house incidents with corrections staff members. Seventy-seven percent of the severely injured inmates had a mental illness diagnosis.
Inmate convicted of 1990 murder dies at Maine State Prison
Willard Eastman, 63, had served 21 years of his 50-year sentence.
Free speech may be limited for prisoners, but not taken away
Like many inmates before him, Randall Daluz, convicted of murdering three people, says he has found God, and he wants to share his insights with others. Working through a Christian couple who visit inmates at the Penobscot County Jail, Daluz’s writings are currently shared on his website, The Journal of a New Creation.