Cases of Interest
Juneal D. Pratt
Chronology of an innocent man still incarcerated after 32 years.
Members of the Nebraska Innocent Project believe that Juneal Pratt is innocent of the crimes of rape, sodomy, and robbery. The timeline of his case was compiled using the original trial transcript (“bill of exceptions”), other legal documents, and information from Pratt.
Click here to read an article about Juneal’s Pardon’s Board Hearing written by Jill Anderson
SEQUENCE OF RECENT EVENTS
PAROLE BOARD REVIEWS PRATT AGAIN
On January 20, 2012 the Parole Board conducted another review of Pratt’s situation. The meeting, which was attended only by board members, Pratt, and his Unit Manager, was not open to the public. It started with board members asking Pratt why he had still not complied with the requirement by Mental Health, Department of Corrections, to complete the in-patient iHelp sex offender treatment program. Pratt’s response was that he was not willing to return to Lincoln Correctional Center, the only place it is offered, and risk being seriously injured again or killed. Since Mental Health has not offered a viable alternative, nor accepted the alternative that Pratt offered at his July hearing (to take the iHelp program while on parole, with treatment by Dr. Kirk Newring, who developed the program for NE Department of Corrections and is now in private practice), the board chose to delay a decision.
By an unknown vote, but at least 3 can be assumed in favor, the decision was to re-review the case in April, 2012, giving Mental Health staff more time to resolve the problem.
November, 2011
Juneal Pratt had a pardon’s hearing in front of Governor Heineman and Attorney General Bruning. The request was tabled and scheduled for a December 19th hearing at 9:00 am in the Governor’s Hearing Room. This hearing is open to the public. PLEASE ATTEND to show support for Juneal.
On July 29, 2011, in a hearing room packed with Pratt supporters, Parole Board chairperson Casmer announced that the motion to deny parole and schedule a review for January passed by a vote of 3 to 2. Reviews are not open to the public; even the prisoner’s attorney is not allowed to be present. The reason for the denial, Casmer said, was lack of “institutional support” for the treatment plan submitted by Pratt.
“Institutional support” refers to approval by C-SORT, a group of psychologists and mental health professionals who work with sex offenders within the prison system. They had received a copy of Pratt’s psychological evaluation and treatment plan done by Ph.D. psychologist Kirk Newring, which pointed out errors in previous evaluations done by Department of Corrections psychologists, and recommending treatment in the community. Newring formerly worked in the Department of Correctional Services and helped to develop their treatment programs for sex offenders. Despite admitting to the errors, C-SORT had not changed their previous recommendation of “in-patient” treatment by the time of the parole hearing.
This time, the Board seems to acknowledge this time that Lincoln Correctional Center (LCC), where the only in-patient sex offender treatment program is offered, is too dangerous for Pratt to return to (see account of Pratt’s assault and injury there on this website). Chairperson Casmer told him to use the time before his review in January of 2012 to “research” places that offer similar (presumably “in-patient”) sex offender treatment programs elsewhere. The community treatment plan offered by Dr. Newring is equivalent to and probably better than that offered at LCC.
In the Board’s internal appeal process, Pratt has asked for reconsideration of the decision. His attempts to prove his innocence by means of DNA testing are ongoing.
For more on the parole hearing see Pamela Everett’s essay on our blog.
April, 2010
Pratt appealed his parole denial from the Douglas County District Court; it was denied by Judge Troia in October. Pratt is scheduled to be reviewed again by the Parole Board in July of 2011. If he is not granted parole Pratt will spend 16 more years in prison. Had he taken the plea bargain he was offered in 1975, he would have been out long ago.
After serving 35+ years and being eligible for parole for 10 years, Pratt’s chance for parole seems to hinge more on his giving a (false) admission of guilt than on the extensive programming he has completed in prison, his educational achievements there, or on his extensive preparation for parole. With the help of a support group in the community, Pratt had obtained adequate housing, employment, and had arranged for continued community-based treatment prior to his parole hearing.
Pratt filed a complaint with the Nebraska State Ombudsman’s office regarding his less-than-successful completion status in the program. After investigating, the Ombudsman’s report showed that Pratt had completed all program assignments, was an active participant in discussions, and had no misconduct reports. Program administrators explained Pratt’s lower grade as the result of his inability to complete the final assignment satisfactorily while continuing to maintain his innocence. A letter from one DCS psychologist to Pratt states specifically that as long as he continues to maintain his innocence, it would not be appropriate for him to repeat the program.
Nevertheless, the Parole Board directed Pratt to return to LCC to do just that. Otherwise he would not be granted parole. Given this ultimatum and LCC staff’s assurance to OCC staff that no threats had been directed at Pratt, he agreed to be transferred back to LCC to repeat the program.
When it seemed impossible to get the sex offender programming mandated by the Parole Board at LCC, and considering the extreme restrictions of protective custody there, Pratt exercised his ability to opt to return to the safety of OCC. There is a sex offender program at OCC, but is not “in-patient” and apparently does not meet the DCS C-sort team’s recommendation for Pratt. C-Sort is made up of mental health professionals. Their recommendation for more of the most intensive programming only available at LCC was based on his risk-assessment score, which was also of concern to the Parole Board. That score has come into question, as an independent psychological examination has revealed.
PAROLE DENIED AGAIN. REVIEW IN 5 MONTHS.
January 29, 2010
Juneal Pratt’s parole hearing was scheduled for Friday, January 29, 2010 at 9:30 a.m., at the Omaha Correctional Center and is open to the public. The Nebraska Parole Board voted 3 to 2 to reschedule a hearing for July, 2011. (the two votes would have sent him back to the review process with no hearing.) In the meantime, Pratt will be required to re-take a sex offender course that requires as a condition for satisfactory completion that he admit guild “with details”. Having no other choice, Pratt has agreed to this condition, which requires him to return to Lincoln Correctional Center and lie about his guilt. In the meantime he will appeal the Board’s decision in a district court. Click on the link below to read the Omaha World Hearld story about the public hearing:
http://www.omaha.com/article/20100114/NEWS01/701149858
To download forms in a PDF format you will need to have Adobe Reader 6.0 or higher. We have a link to the Acrobat web site if you need to download this program. The program is FREE from the Adobe website.
June 2009 – The Nebraska Supreme Court denied Pratt’s motion for exoneration or a new trial based on exculpatory DNA testing of the victims’ clothing that has been preserved, however poorly. The next legal step is to file a federal Habeas Corpus, which Pratt will have to do himself, as that is beyond the scope of duty of the Nebraska Public Advocacy Commission’s attorneys.
January, 2009 – Juneal Pratt remains at OCC, having refused to return to LCC to re-take the sex offender program (iHelp) because he has been informed in writing that it will not be possible to pass the course without admitting guilt. No transitional counseling or work-release has been initiated. Pratt has written to the Parole Board to see how this development might affect his chance for parole, and their response was that he should “complete the programming recommended by mental staff [sic] at OCC.” But that office has informed Pratt that he has an “outstanding recommendation for iHelp” and until he completes that he is not considered eligible for “community custody” by OCC Mental Health staff. Without parole, Pratt would not be released until 2026, at age 71.
August, 2008 – Pratt was transferred from LCC to OCC, presumably to start the preparation-for-parole process. But almost immediately on arrival in Omaha he received the news that the Mental Health staff of the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) had ordered that he return to LCC to re-take an in-patient sex offender program. He had enrolled in the program before (it’s not mandatory) because taking it was a condition set by the Parole Board for scheduling a parole hearing.
Pratt completed every assignment and was an active participant in the 18-24 month In-patient Sex Offender Program (ISOP). He was given a grade of “Maximum Benefit Attained,” as opposed to pass or fail. This grade means that all but one of the assignments were satisfactorily completed. The one not completed required participants to admit committing the sexual offense and describe how it would be avoided in the future. Pratt’s refusal to admit his guilt was interpreted as denial rather than as standing on principle in continuing to maintain his innocence, which he has done for 33 years. If he had lied to pass the course it could have harmed his legal efforts to prove his innocence, which are ongoing. The situation that Pratt is in is apparently not unusual for wrongly convicted innocent persons, as described by Daniel Medwed in an Iowa Law Review article (93, p.491) “The Innocent Prisoner’s Dilemma: Consequences of Refusal to Admit Guilt at Parole Hearings.”
Letters to Juneal Pratt:
Juneal Pratt #30706
P.O. Box 11099
Omaha, NE 68111-0099
August, 2008 – Pratt has been at the Omaha Correctional Center (OCC) since August 7, of 2008, but has never received permission for work release, which was recommended by the Parole Board, despite many requests. It is hoped that this will not damage his prospects for parole. He has been working in the “factory” at OCC increasing his knowledge and skills in cabinetry.
July 11, 2008 – Inmates have parole reviews yearly, even before they are parole-eligible, to monitor their progress toward readiness to be paroled. On this date Juneal Pratt had his 33rd review. The result was that a Parole Hearing, at which a decision will be made as to whether parole will be granted or not, was set for January, 2010. The Parole Board’s recommendation was that the intervening 15 months be used to prepare for living in the community.
Thanks for your interest and support. Juneal has offered to volunteer for the NE Innocence Project while he’s on work release.
Letters to the Parole Board:
State of Nebraska
Board of Parole
P.O. Box 94754
Lincoln, NE 68509-4754
