A federal judge has awarded $1.50 in attorney fees to attorneys for an Arkansas prison inmate who won a civil rights lawsuit against the state prison system.
The attorneys for Shawanna Nelson Lumsey had asked for about $140,000 in fees -- but Judge James Moody on Monday said they are limited by state law to 150 percent of damages in the case.
A federal jury in July found Lumsey's civil rights were violated when she was shackled as she gave birth while she was an inmate in 2003 and awarded her $1.
The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reported the judge did award the attorneys just less than $1,800 for expenses.
The Prison Litigation Reform Act of 1996 limits attorney fees in inmates' lawsuits to 150 percent of the damages awarded.
Information from: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, http://www.arkansasonline.com
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