Prisoners fight against working in heat on former slave plantation, raising hope for change in South

Beneath the blazing summer sun on a former slave plantation, Lamont Gross and fellow prisoners stooped in long rows, picking vegetables by hand under the watchful eyes of armed guards on horseback. He said breaks were short and infrequent, with nothing to protect workers from the heat. “I saw guys collapse,” Gross said of his … Read more

Sparks fly, Nevada judge sets deadline in bail bid for man charged in Tupac Shakur killing

LAS VEGAS — Sparks flew in court Tuesday as a Nevada judge rebuked a defense attorney and an ailing former Los Angeles-area gang leader lashed out against prosecutors during his renewed effort to be freed from jail to house arrest ahead of his trial in the 1996 killing of hip-hop legend Tupac Shakur. Clark County … Read more

No prison for a nursing home owner who sent 800 residents to ride out a hurricane in squalor

NEW ORLEANS — A Louisiana businessman who sent more than 800 elderly residents from his seven nursing homes to ride out Hurricane Ida in a crowded, ill-equipped warehouse pleaded no contest to 15 criminal counts Monday and was sentenced to three years of probation. Bob Dean Jr. also must pay more than $358,000 in restitution … Read more

Detroit-area county to pay $7 million to family of man killed while jailed for drunken driving

DETROIT — A Detroit-area county agreed to a $7 million settlement in the death of a man who was severely beaten by another man while in jail for a misdemeanor. Separately, a federal prosecutor announced Monday that the Wayne County jail has agreed to improve how it serves people with disabilities and mental health needs. … Read more

Gypsy Rose Blanchard pregnant soon after release from prison for conspiring to kill abusive mother

Gypsy Rose Blanchard, who recruited her former boyfriend to kill her mother after years of being forced to pretend she was gravely ill, announced Tuesday that she is pregnant and hopes to give her child everything she lacked growing up. Blanchard said in a YouTube video that the baby is due in January, which will … Read more

Melissa Etheridge connects with incarcerated women in new docuseries ‘I’m Not Broken’

NEW YORK — NEW YORK (AP) — Melissa Etheridge realized two career dreams with her new docuseries “Melissa Etheridge: I’m Not Broken”: performing for incarcerated women and recording the concert for a live album. The singer-songwriter grew up in Leavenworth, Kansas — an area home to a well-known federal penitentiary and other state and military … Read more

As temperatures soar, judge tells Louisiana to help protect prisoners working in fields

Amid blistering summer temperatures, a federal judge ordered Louisiana to take steps to protect the health and safety of incarcerated workers toiling in the fields of a former slave plantation, saying they face “substantial risk of injury or death.” The state immediately appealed the decision. U.S. District Judge Brian Jackson issued a temporary restraining order … Read more

Man accused of stabbing Salman Rushdie rejects plea deal involving terrorism charge

The man charged with stabbing author Salman Rushdie rejected a plea deal Tuesday that would have shortened his state prison term but exposed him to a federal terrorism-related charge, the suspect’s lawyer said. Hadi Matar, 26, has been held without bail since the 2022 attack, in which he is accused of stabbing Rushdie more than … Read more

Former Trump aide Steve Bannon reports to jail

Steve Bannon, former top advisor to Donald Trump, greets supporters as he arrives to speak with media before he reports to prison at the U.S. federal correctional institution in Danbury, Connecticut, on July 1, 2024. Eduardo Munoz | Reuters Steve Bannon, a former aide to Donald Trump, reported to prison on Monday to begin a … Read more

Judge considering if ex-gang leader held in Tupac Shakur killing gets house arrest on $750K bail

LAS VEGAS — A Nevada judge said Tuesday she wasn’t immediately convinced of the legality of an effort by a hip-hop music figure to underwrite a $750,000 bond to free a former Los Angeles-area gang leader from jail ahead of his murder trial in the 1996 killing of hip-hop music legend Tupac Shakur in Las … Read more