Tennessee plaintiff says prison operator is withholding info

Julie Henry sits on a suspended platform as she protests outside the headquarters of CoreCivic Monday, Aug. 6, 2018, in Nashville, Tenn.
Julie Henry sits on a suspended platform as she protests outside the headquarters of CoreCivic Monday, Aug. 6, 2018, in Nashville, Tenn.

JACKSON, Tenn. (AP) - A woman suing a Tennessee prison operator over the death of her incarcerated husband says she's being denied several relevant case documents.

Carolyn Johnson says understaffing ultimately killed her husband, who was fatally assaulted in 2017 by another Hardeman County Correctional Facility inmate.

The Jackson Sun reports prison operator CoreCivic says they provided usable and confidential documents. Attorney Ty Clevenger says CoreCivic also refused several requests. He filed a motion to compel the release of documents about the husband's death, staffing and other issues.

CoreCivic spokeswoman Amanda Gilchrist declined to provide refusal reasons. She says CoreCivic is complying with a protective order allowing them to deem documents confidential.

Clevenger says CoreCivic is copiously using "confidential."

A state audit published a day after the husband's death says several CoreCivic facilities were consistently understaffed.

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