TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Stacey Shrader Joslin on Mar 3, 2015

A bill filed in the state legislature would require that suits against private prisons, including those operated by the Corrections Corporation of America (CCA), be filed in the county where the prison is operated, the Associated Press reports. The legislation is a response to a Tennessee Supreme Court decision involving a former CCA inmate who sued over bad medical care. The court said a state law requiring inmates to sue in the county where the prison is located did not apply to private prisons. Supporters say the bill will prevent inmates from being transferred across the state to go to court. Opponents argue that judges and juries in small towns are likely to be biased in favor of a local prison. The Memphis Daily News has the story.