A Small Victory for Prisoner Dignity

Prisoner’s Battle for Decent Medical Care Humbles BOP, Wins Cash Settlement

 

By Derek Gilna

 

            Those of you who follow this newsletter know that I have been honored to be a writer for Prison Legal News (PLN), a publication that has been a champion for prisoner rights and a tireless campaigner for decent treatment of federal prisoners.   Recently in that capacity, I submitted an article to PLN about a prisoner who, filing pro se, won a hard-earned settlement against the BOP for shoddy medical care, not for a life-threatening illness, but for one of those myriad examples of deliberate indifference to those everyday medical issues that, if ignored, can often turn into larger, life-threatening conditions.

            This news item will not gain big headlines, but it is an example for all of us as to what can be accomplished by a slow, steady effort of using the documents and procedures that currently exist to win relief.  Although a competent legal professional would have surely won more settlement money than he was able to obtain while confined in the federal system, it shows that many judges do take these administrative procedures and prisoner court filings seriously.

            Michael Alan Crooker filed a Federal Tort Claims (FTCA) under 28 U.S.C. Sections 2671-2680 alleging "malicious prosecution, negligence, and medical maltreatment by the United States Marshall's Service ('USMS') and the United States Bureau of Prisons) 'BOP')." The pro se litigant weathered a government motion for summary judgment and endured to win a $8,000 settlement from the federal government.

            Crooker, prior to filing the suit, was a diligent advocate for his own medical treatment, refused to tolerate the continuing pattern of inadequate BOP medical treatment.  The plaintiff then had to endure the standard BOP policy of making life difficult for any prison who dares to challenge this medical indifference by purposely denying him proper corrective eye wear, which included loss of good-time on questionable grounds. Crooker also had complained of the fact that the BOP psychologist had improperly revealed confidential medical information to non-authorized personnel, in contravention of the BOP's own policy statement.

 

            Similar opportunities for relief exist for you, if you are only willing to take advantage of them. Mike Crooker didn’t give up, and won not only some money, but some well-deserved self-respect and necessary medical treatment. The BOP paid the settlement money into Crooker's commissary account, making him, at least for a time, a very popular man on the pound.

Derek Gilna
dgilna1948@yahoo.com