Story Archive

Justice Served

“He thanked me and said, ‘You did a great job and I’m satisfied’,” said Attorney Harrison Williams of his client, Eon Shepherd, after their federal lawsuit against the state concluded. Shepherd is a prisoner serving life, and with Williams’ help he sued the State of New York because prison guards “touched” his “sacred” Rastafarian dreadlocks during a search, and “slightly tore” his hair. With Williams’ help, Shepherd won the suit — and was awarded $1.00 by the jury. Williams says his law firm put in $75,000 worth of billable hours to prosecute the case; an appeals court ruled that the federal Prison Litigation Reform Act, which was passed to try to stem ridiculous lawsuits by inmates, applied in this case. The Act in part limits attorney’s fees to 150 percent of a jury award applied, and the court awarded Williams $1.50 for his time. (RC/AP) ...Hopefully he’s one and a half times more satisfied than Shepherd.