Michigan Won't Give Up Fight Over Inmate's Air Mattress
KINGSLEY, Mich. (WWJ/AP) - A dispute over a Michigan prisoner's air mattress is returning to a federal appeals court.
The state again is vowing to appeal a decision that gives a special mattress to Richard Boone II, who has pain due to a history of leg and hip problems.
The 45-year-old Boone is a convicted robber at the Pugsley prison near Traverse City. In November, a federal court in Cincinnati overturned a decision that granted him the air mattress.
The appeals court said Detroit federal Judge Arthur Tarnow didn't follow the correct procedure for an injunction. In February, Tarnow held a hearing and approved the mattress again.
The Corrections Department claims other prisoners will demand a special mattress if Boone can have one. A state lawyer has described prison mattresses as "crappy."
Boone has threatened to kill himself if he doesn't get the bed.
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