Ex-Inmate Opposes Judgeship for Corrections Official
A former inmate is leading a campaign against the judicial nomination of Gustavus Puryear, the chief lawyer for the private prison company that incarcerated him for six years.
Alex Friedmann is a longtime opponent of the Corrections Corporation of America, having sued the company for a civil rights violation in 1996 while in prison for armed robbery, the Associated Press reports. He was awarded $6,000.
Friedmann started his campaign because of concerns that Puryear, nominated for a federal judgeship in Nashville, Tenn., lacked the qualifications to be a judge and faced a conflict of interest in cases involving his former employer, the story says.
Friedmann looked up every case in which Puryear was listed as counsel, and concluded he had just two federal trials on his resumé. Friedmann formed a group to oppose Puryear and persuaded two groups to oppose the nomination: the Alliance for Justice and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.
