by Chuck Sharman I n one of the largest verdicts ever returned in a suit over an American jail death, a federal jury in Louisiana awarded $42.75 million on October 20, 2025, to the Estate of Erie Moore, Sr., who died almost 10 years earlier while detained at the Richwood Correctional Center (RCC), a private jail owned and operated at the time for the City of Monroe by LaSalle Corrections. According to the complaint later filed on his behalf, Moore’s death traced in part to a bizarre incident in October 2012, when he followed a state trooper and pulled him over, making threats and suicidal comments in what the trooper ascertained was an attempt at “suicide by cop.” That resulted in a notice to local law enforcement in Monroe, where Moore lived. But the notice never made it to the Monroe cop who picked up Moore early on the morning of October 12, 2015, “for disturbing the peace by using foul language and acting erratically at a doughnut shop,” the complaint recalled. Moore, 57, was taken into custody and delivered to RCC, but his booking wasn’t completed because his behavior was too erratic. Jailers put Moore in a lockdown cell to be held in isolation. But they soon added another detainee, Vernon White, 28, after breaking up his fight with a third detainee. That night, guards maced Moore to make him stop kicking his door. They maced him again the next morning after he and White got into a scuffle; they said Moore was acting “crazy.” After another altercation between the two detainees, White was found on the floor. Guards entered the cell to extract him, macing Moore a third time and striking the back of his head, knocking him to the floor. Once White was out of the cell—he later died of his injuries—six guards returned to extract Moore, putting him in a bear hug and slamming him head-­first to the floor. He wasn’t moving when they picked him up again, and a guard slipped and Moore’s hit head the floor one more time. The next hour and a half Moore spent in the “four-­way” area of the jail, where no one attempted to treat him or even take his vital signs, the complaint said. There were also no surveillance cameras in the area. So there was no record of what happened before deputies from Ouichita Parish arrived to transport him to a schedule hearing there and found him restrained and unresponsive, his head bleeding. Because of those injuries, the Ouichita Parish Correctional Center refused to admit Moore when he arrived, sending him instead to a hospital, where he died of fatal brain injuries on November 14, 2015. The Parish coroner ruled the death a homicide, but no one was charged. Monroe stopped contracting for RCC, which LaSalle now operates for federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Meanwhile, with the aid of Shreveport attorney Nelson W. Cameron, Moore’s survivors sued LaSalle and Ouichita Parish personnel in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana in July 2016. Proceeding under 42 U.S.C. § 1983, they alleged violations of his Fourth and Eighth Amendment rights with excessive use of force, as well as training and supervision failures by LaSalle that demonstrated deliberate indifference to the serious risk of harm that resulted—and which ultimately left Moore dead. After discovery, the district court granted Defendants’ motion to dismiss the deliberate indifference and excessive force claims. But the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reversed that ruling in July 2022. As PLN reported, the Court found that “the record in this case is beyond troubling,” reinstating the claims and denying LaSalle derivative sovereign immunity. [See: PLN , May 2023, p.18.] The case proceeded to trial, at the conclusion of which jurors found LaSalle, its jail and staff 90% liable for Moore’s death, the City of Monroe bearing the remaining 10% of the blame. Moore’s survivors—three adult children—were awarded $19.5 million in compensatory damages, plus $23.25 million in punitive damages. See : Moore v. LaSalle Corr. LLC , USDC (W.D. La.), Case No. 3:16-­cv-­1007 “The jury found the guards continued to use excessive force against Mr. Moore in the camera-­less area,” Los Angeles attorney Max A. Schoening told AP News . He and fellow Qureshi Law attorney Omar Qureshi joined the Moore family’s legal team for the trial. Defendants moved the district court to bifurcate the verdict between compensatory and punitive components, apparently planning to appeal the latter for the jury’s failure to make a separate apportionment of blame from that made for its compensatory damages verdict. On October 3, 2025, the district court agreed that “evidence associated with punitive damages … should not be permitted until the second phase of trial.” It further ordered that when the matter is heard, “Plaintiffs may reference the possibility of punitive damages in their opening statements but may not elaborate further or discuss Defendants’ financial condition.” See : Moore v. LaSalle Corr. LLC , 2025 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 196709 (W.D. La.). Even if they succeed in striking down the punitive damage award, what remains is “the largest compensatory damage award I have ever heard of,” according to Carnegie Mellon University professor Jay Aronson, who wrote Death in Custody: How America Ignores the Truth and What We Can Do about It . No appeal has been filed, but PLN will continue to update case developments. Additional source: AP News As a digital subscriber to Prison Legal News, you can access full text and downloads for this and other premium content. 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LLC More from this issue: The Succession Battle for a Prison Empire , by Katya Schwenk From the Editor , by Paul Wright DOJ Leaves Louisiana Over-Detention Suit on Life Support, Two Others Granted Class-Action Status , by Chuck Sharman New Jersey Breaks Ground on New $330 Million Women’s Prison After Raid at Old Facility Colorado Children Sue County Jail to Fight Visitation Ban Record $42.75 Million Verdict in Louisiana Detainee’s Death in LaSalle Jail , by Chuck Sharman Prisoner Assaulted by BOP Guard and Left With Bleeding Rectum—Then the Cover-Up Began , by Chuck Sharman One Guard Pleads Guilty, Another Receives Light Sentence in New York Prisoner’s Killing , by Jo Ellen Nott Tennessee Seeks $13 Million Raise for CoreCivic, Despite Violations $1.9 Million Settlement in Washington Jail Death Includes Policy Changes , by Chuck Sharman Eighth Circuit: Former Prisoner’s Amended Complaint Filed After Release Not Subject to PLRA Exhaustion Requirement , by Chuck Sharman $7 Million Paid by Ohio County for Jail Detainee’s Death in Restraint Chair , by Chuck Sharman Wisconsin DOC Releases 1,700 Private Health Records by Mistake Suicidal West Virginia Prisoner Granted Transfer From 13-Year Solitary Confinement , by Chuck Sharman Iowa DOC Declines to Privatize State Prison Healthcare DOJ Settles With Orange County Over Use of “Jailhouse Snitches” , by Chuck Sharman Hawaii Prison Warden Reinstated After Being Fired in 2014 for Sexual Harassment , by Michael Thompson Oklahoma Prisoner Found Unconscious in Cell Hours After Avoiding Execution Sixth Circuit Affirms Denial of Qualified Immunity to Michigan Warden Whose Guards Gave Prisoner Plastic Bag Used in Suicide , by Chuck Sharman $4 Million Settlement Reached in Class Action Challenge to Conditions at Shuttered St. Louis “Workhouse” Jail , by Chuck Sharman First Circuit Greenlights Rhode Island Prisoner’s Damages Suit for Disastrous 450-Day Solitary Confinement , by Chuck Sharman Watchdog Calls Out BOP for Widespread Abuse of Restraints on Prisoners , by Chuck Sharman Second Circuit Vacates Finding that Prisoner Failed to Exhaust Administrative Remedies; Remands Conditions of Confinement and Due Process Claims , by Douglas Ankney Arkansas “Jailhouse Attorney” Secures Return from Retaliatory Transfer Out of State , by Chuck Sharman Fifth Circuit Upholds Dismissal of Suit by Civilly Committed Texan , by Matthew Clarke Disabled Prisoner Who Won $1.85 Million After Fall in Chicago Jail Secures Class Certification for Separate ADA Challenge to Jail Conditions , by Chuck Sharman Ex-Wife of Minnesota DOC Commissioner Sentenced for Poisoning Attempt on Son Mississippi Legislator Blasts VitalCore, DOC for Shoddy Prison Healthcare , by Chuck Sharman Louisiana Prisoner Granted Preliminary Injunction in Challenge to Jail Book Ban , by Chuck Sharman Over $222,000 in Legal Costs and Fees Awarded to HRDC in Florida Records Suit Against Centurion , by Chuck Sharman Louisiana Detainee Captured After Two Previous Escapes Hyundai and Kia Sued in California for Use of Prison Labor in Southern States

Arkansas Prison Reaches ADA Settlement , by Chuck Sharman SCOTUS Stops Fourth Circuit from Tossing Federal Prisoner’s Appeal on Technicality , by Chuck Sharman $6.49 Million Settlement for 600,000 Prisoners in Massive CorrectCare Data Breach Class Action , by Chuck Sharman Brooklyn Jail Guard Convicted for Shooting and Car Chase , by Jo Ellen Nott $95,000 Settlement for Trans BOP Prisoner Assaulted by Cellmate in Arizona Lockup , by Chuck Sharman CDCR May No Longer Use Sentence Credits to Advance Parole Eligibility of Some California Prisoners Serving Indeterminate Sentences , by Chuck Sharman Huge $27.75 Million Verdict for Montana Prisoner Nearly “Beaten to Death” at CoreCivic Lockup , by Chuck Sharman Fourth Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Claims Against North Carolina Prison Doctor by Prisoner Nearly Killed by Avian Flu , by Chuck Sharman Repairs at Arkansas Prison Wastewater Plant Keep Getting Delayed Sixth Circuit Affirms Denial of Qualified Immunity to Jail Nurses in Suit Arising from Prisoner’s Death , by Douglas Ankney Wisconsin Prisoner Wins in Seventh Circuit Review of Exhaustive Remedies Case , by Michael Thompson Louisiana Prisoner’s Mother Sues Warden Following Son’s Death Suit by Mentally Disabled Detainees at South Carolina Jail Secures Class Certification; No Action on Damning DOJ Report , by Chuck Sharman Third Circuit Revives Pennsylvania Prisoner’s Claims Against the State and Wellpath , by Michael Thompson Washington Court of Appeals Refuses to Let DOC Play “Both Sides” with State Prisoner , by Chuck Sharman New York State Closes Yet Another Prison The BOP Is Closing a Los Angeles Prison Due to Falling Concrete Arrests by Trump-Backed Task Force Make Tennessee Jail Conditions Worse Broken Water Pipe Leads to Unsanitary Conditions at Montana State Prison $5,000 Settlement for Missouri Prisoner’s Retaliation Claim After Eighth Circuit Dismissed Due Process Claim Over Falsified Disciplinary Report , by Chuck Sharman Five New York Prison Guards Charged with Employment Fraud An AI Model from Securus Aims to Expand Phone Call Monitoring Prisoners and Detainees in the Gulf Coast Are Particularly at Risk from Natural Disasters Ten People Indicted in Three Separate Smuggling Schemes at a Maryland Prison New Hampshire Guard Abuse and Theft Uncovered Through Poaching Investigation Guards at an Infamous Mississippi Jail Mocked a Disabled Detainee Ninth Circuit Remands California Prisoner’s Case in which No Contest Plea Was Admitted as Evidence of Guilt , by Michael Thompson Maine Superior Court Order to Reform Public Defender System Paused on Appeal , by Douglas Ankney Ohio Sheriff Agrees to Outside Probe in Investigation of Jailed Double Amputee’s Death $8.5 Million for Family of Murdered Elderly Californian Detained for Cold Case Killings Based on “Genetic Genealogy” , by Chuck Sharman More from Chuck Sharman: $30,000 Settlement Reached in Virginia Jail Death That Put Richmond Lockup Under State Oversight , Aug. 1, 2026 Oregon Reaches $49 Million Settlement with State Prisoners in COVID-19 Class-Action , Aug. 1, 2026 Ninth Circuit Revives HRDC Challenge to Washington DOC Mail Restrictions , Aug. 1, 2026 $4.5 Million Paid by Cook County for Detainee Suicide in Chicago Jail , Aug. 1, 2026 Detroit Pays $5.8 Million to Former State Prisoner Exonerated of Murder After 15 Years , Aug. 1, 2026 Colorado Pays $245,000 to Muslim Former Prisoner Shaved by Same Guard Who Cost DOC Earlier Settlement with Jewish Prisoner Denied Kosher Meals , Aug. 1, 2026 $3 Million Settlement Reached with BOP for Attorney’s Fees in Sex Abuse Class-Action from Now-Shuttered California “Rape Club” , Aug. 1, 2026 $6.35 Million Paid for Ohio Jail Detainee’s Spinal Cord Injury Caused by Guard , Aug. 1, 2026 Death of Seattle Detainee—Jailed Despite Not Being “Grounded in Reality”—Costs King County $3.5 Million Settlement , Aug. 1, 2026 $3.25 Million Paid by Georgia After Prisoner Bakes to Death in Outdoor Recreation Cage , Aug. 1, 2026 More from these topics: $4.5 Million Paid by Cook County for Detainee Suicide in Chicago Jail , Aug. 1, 2026. Medical Neglect/Malpractice , Failure to Treat (Mental Illness) , Suicides , Administrative Detention/Segregation , Deliberate Indifference . At Least Three Guards Charged for Assaulting Two Massachusetts Prisoners , Aug. 1, 2026. Guard Misconduct , Guard Brutality/Beatings , Assaults on Staff , Wrongful Use of Force . New York Ordered to Pay Prisoner $25,000 for Failing to Protect Him from Attack , Aug. 1, 2026. Failure to Protect (General) , Defenses , Damages - Compensatory , Negligence/Reckless Endangerment , Deliberate Indifference . Oregon Agrees to $2.3 Million Settlement After Guards Toss Mentally Ill Prisoner in Solitary, Taunt Him Until He Kills Himself , Aug. 1, 2026. Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement , Failure to Treat (Mental Illness) , Suicides , 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights , Deliberate Indifference . $10.19 Million Paid for Retired California Prison Guard’s Death in Colorado Jail , Aug. 1, 2026. Failure to Treat , Stun Guns/Tasers , Failure to Train/Supervise , Medical Neglect/Malpractice , Deliberate Indifference . Fourth Circuit Affirms Damages Class Certification in Opioid Treatment Denial , Aug. 1, 2026. Wexford Health Services , Drug/Alcohol Withdrawal , Failure to Treat , Class Certification , Deliberate Indifference . Ombudsman Report Finds Use of Force Misapplied in Contraband Search , Aug. 1, 2026. Guard Misconduct , Failure to Treat , Body Cavity Searches , Guard Brutality/Beatings , Pepper Spray/Tear Gas . $3.25 Million Paid by Georgia After Prisoner Bakes to Death in Outdoor Recreation Cage , Aug. 1, 2026. Failure to Treat , Exposure to Heat , Settlements , Medical Neglect/Malpractice , Deliberate Indifference . $1.2 Million for Elderly Detainee Shoved Out the Door of Sacramento Jail by Guard , Aug. 1, 2026. Guard Brutality/Beatings , Americans with Disabilities Act , Rehabilitation Act , Failure to Treat (Mental Illness) , 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights . $100,000 Paid to New York Detainee Whose Infant Died in Syracuse Jail , Aug. 1, 2026. Naphcare , OB/GYN , Failure to Treat , Medical Neglect/Malpractice , Deliberate Indifference .