Man Held in Solitary Confinement 2 Years After DWI Gets $22M

[Silent_Bob]

http://www.nbcdfw.com/news/weird/Man-Held-in-Solitary-Confinement-2-Years-After-DWI-Gets-22M-138053288.html

A man who spent two years in solitary confinement after getting arrested for DWI was awarded $22 million for suffering inhumane treatment in New Mexico's Dona Ana County Jail.

Stephen Slevin was arrested in August of 2005 for driving while intoxicated, according to NBC station KOB.com. He said he never got a trial and spent the entire time languishing in solitary, even pulling his own tooth when he was denied dental care.

"'[Prison officials were] walking by me every day, watching me deteriorate," he said. "Day after day after day, they did nothing, nothing at all, to get me any help."

Slevin said he made countless requests to see a doctor to get medication for his depression, but wasn't allowed to see one until only a few weeks before his release. He also never got to see a judge.

The $22 million settlement, awarded by a federal jury on Tuesday, is one of the largest prisoner civil rights settlements in U.S. history, according to KOB.com.

"I wanted people to know that there are people at The Dona Ana County Jail that are doing things like this to people and getting away with it," Slevin, who now suffers from PTSD and believes he will have to take medication for life as a result, said. "Why they did what they did, I have no idea."

Neither the county nor Slevin's attorney returned phone calls from msnbc.com, but Slevin's attorney, Matt Coyte, told KOB.com, "I have never been with or seen a braver man who stood up to these guys for what they did to him ... [This case] It affects everybody and it's not good for this country. It's not good for Mr. Slevin for sure and it's not good for this country. It has to stop."

[Pat K]

Damn.

[KBCraig]

http://www.ktbs.com/news/30302134/detail.html

Minden Woman Jailed Nearly Five Years Without Trial
by Nick Caloway
POSTED: 10:22 pm CST January 25, 2012
UPDATED: 10:31 pm CST January 25, 2012


HOMER, LA -- A Minden woman who has been incarcerated without conviction for nearly five years is set to go to trial next month.

Mary Nguyen, 44, was initially arrested in May 2007 and charged with felony theft and criminal mischief.

The charge stemmed from a dispute between Nguyen, who was in the printing business, and David Newell, a candidate for district attorney and former mayor of Homer. Nguyen allegedly painted inflammatory words on dozens of t-shirts that Newell hired her to print for his campaign. She then distributed the shirts around the town of Homer. The theft charge is a felony because Newell claimed the shirts were worth more than $500.

In January 2008, Nguyen's family bonded her out of jail so she could see her son, who was home from college.

Nguyen's mother, Mary Foster, says her daughter had become mentally ill. Two days after she was freed, her family decided to revoke the bond.

When Claiborne Parish sheriff's deputies went to her home to rearrest her, Nguyen allegedly brandished a shotgun and pointed it at deputies. Her family disputes the claim.

Nguyen was charged with assault on a peace officer with a firearm, also a felony.

She pleaded not guilty, but the court ordered two mental health evaluations. Nguyen suffered from schizophrenia and had delusional and paranoid tendencies, according to court records obtained by KTBS.

After serving some time at a state mental health facility, Nguyen is back at the Claiborne Parish Sheriff's Office in Homer. She remains heavily medicated, but the court has now ruled her mentally fit to stand trial.

District Attorney Jonathan Stewart says his office has offered Nguyen plea bargains, which she has refused.

Even if the case goes to trial and she is convicted, there's a good chance Nguyen will be freed based on time she's already served. The case is on the court docket for February, but a separate case with higher priority could bump Nguyen's trial back to May.

Nguyen's court appointed attorney, Paul Garner, says both sides would like to see her walk free.