Winston Associates Win Unanimous Trial Victory for Prison Inmate

Following a four-day jury trial in federal court in the Central District of Illinois, a team of Winston associates secured a verdict and compensatory damages for our client, an inmate at the Pontiac Correctional Center.

In October 2016, our client alleged that a corrections officer falsely accused him of assault while he was working in the prison kitchen. In response, prison officials found him guilty after holding a perfunctory two-minute disciplinary hearing in which they failed to consider video footage or witness testimony.

Our client was then confined for six months in disciplinary segregation, stripped of his privileges, subjected to regular searches, and required to wear special attire indicating his status as a “staff assaulter.” 

The Winston team included Chicago Associates Libby Deshaies, John Drosick, and Adam Smith, Chicago/Los Angeles Associate Kevin Simpson, Chicago CSR/Pro Bono Specialist Ken Berry, and Houston Trial Technician Rudy Radic.

During the four-day trial, the Winston team convinced the jury that our client’s Fourteenth Amendment right to procedural due process had been violated by prison officials—securing a unanimous verdict against three of the four defendants. Libby gave the opening, Kevin delivered the closing and every associate handled at least one witness during the trial. 

For more details about Winston’s Pro Bono practice, click here.