NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The last of the "Angola Three" inmates, whose decades in solitary confinement on a Louisiana prison farm drew international condemnation and became the subject of two documentaries, was ordered released Monday.

The ruling would free 68-year-old Albert Woodfox after more than 40 years in solitary, which human rights experts have said constitutes torture.

U.S. District Judge James Brady of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, ordered the release of Woodfox and took the extraordinary step of barring Louisiana prosecutors from trying him for a third time.

A spokesman for the Louisiana attorney general said the state would appeal Brady's ruling to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals "to make sure this murderer stays in prison and remains fully accountable for his actions."

Tory Pegram of the International Coalition to Free the Angola 3, who is working with Woodfox's lawyers on his release, said they are all "thrilled that justice has come for our innocent friend."

Woodfox was placed in solitary confinement in 1972 after being charged in the death of a Louisiana State Penitentiary guard in April of that year. The prison farm is more commonly known as the Angola prison and it is Louisiana's only maximum-security prison.

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FILE - In this Aug. 18, 2011 file photo, a prison guard on horseback watches inmates return from a f …

Woodfox and two other state prisoners became known as the Angola Three because of their long stretches in solitary confinement at Angola. Other members of the Angola Three were prisoners Robert King and Herman Wallace.

Woodfox and Wallace, who were both serving unrelated armed robbery sentences, had said they were singled out for harsh treatment, including isolation, because of their political activism. Woodfox and Wallace were former Black Panthers and helped establish a prison chapter of the Black Panther Party at the Angola prison in 1971, set up demonstrations and organized strikes for better conditions.

Wallace, convicted with Woodfox of murder in the death of guard Brent Miller, died last fall only days after a judge freed him and granted him a new trial. King was released in 2001 after his conviction in the death of a fellow inmate in 1973 was reversed.

Woodfox has been tried and convicted twice in the guard's death, but both convictions were overturned. Brady said the "exceptional circumstances" of the case had led him to bar the state from seeking a third trial. In his ruling, he cited doubt that the state could provide a "fair third trial"; the inmate's age and poor health; the unavailability of witnesses; "the prejudice done onto Mr. Woodfox by spending over forty years in solitary confinement," and "the very fact that Mr. Woodfox has already been tried twice."

Woodfox is in solitary confinement at a prison in St. Francisville, Louisiana, awaiting trial. His lawyers were headed there Monday to seek his release. Pegram said Woodfox gets to exercise for one hour three times a week during his confinement at the West Feliciana Parish Detention Center. He has a television to watch and a shower in his cell, she added.

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In this April 15, 2014 photo, inmates harvest turnips at the Louisiana State Penitentiary in Angola, …

Of Brady's order for an unconditional release, Pegram said, "I call it the unicorn. It's almost never done."

Jasmine Heiss, a senior campaigner with Amnesty International USA, called Brady's ruling "a momentous step toward justice."

Heiss said Woodfox has been "trapped in a legal process riddled with flaws."

"The only humane action that the Louisiana authorities can take now is to ensure his immediate release."

At the same time, though, state prosecutors were working to keep Woodfox in prison.

Aaron Sadler, a spokesman for Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell, said the state was seeking an emergency stay of Brady's ruling from the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans.

"With today's order, the court would see fit to set free a twice-convicted murderer," Sadler said. "This order arbitrarily sets aside jury decisions and gives a free pass to a murderer based on faulty procedural issues."

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This story has been clarified to point out that two of the inmates were convicted in the prison guard's death, while a third was convicted of a separate killing.

Associated Press Videos
Texas Officer on Leave After Video Shows Scuffle

McKINNEY, Texas (AP) — A black teenager in a swimsuit repeatedly cried out, "Call my momma!" as a white police officer pinned her to the ground, only moments after drawing his handgun on other black teens.

"On your face!" the officer yelled at the girl, amid screaming from a crowd of onlookers.

The officer's actions raised tensions and led to protests Monday in this Dallas suburb, where some community activists accused him of racism while others urged calm until the facts are investigated.

Jahi Adisa Bakari, the father of another teenage girl at the party, said he would press for the officer to be fired, saying he "was out of control."

But Benét Embry, a black local radio personality who witnessed the incident, said it was "not another Ferguson" or "another Baltimore," referring to other police encounters that have left suspects dead and fueled a nationwide "Black Lives Matter" movement.

"This was a teenage party that got out of hand," Embry said.

McKinney Mayor: We Share Your ConcernsPlay video

Police said some of the young people did not live in the area and did not have permission to be at the pool in McKinney, an affluent, predominantly white city.

According to neighbors, Embry said, a woman who lives in the community reserved the pool for a party. The homeowners' association limits the number of guests each homeowner may have at the pool to two. But about 130 people, mostly kids, showed up for the woman's party, he said.

At one point, several kids began jumping over the fence to get into the pool area and were causing a disturbance, Embry said, and a couple of fights broke out.

While he did not agree with the officer's profanity or belligerence, Embry said, police were right to respond.

"That's what they are supposed to do — protect us," he said. "I don't know any other way he could have taken her down or established order."

Civil Rights Activists Call for Officer's Firi …Play video

The officer has been placed on administrative leave. In a statement, the police department said the video "raised concerns that are being investigated."

City spokeswoman Anna Clark identified the officer as 41-year-old David Eric Casebolt, who joined the police force in August 2005.

Prior to that, he served almost two years as a state trooper, according to records from the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement.

Casebolt took eight hours of cultural diversity training at Collin County Community College in February 2009. He has also taken courses in racial profiling and use of force.

As police broke up the crowd, the officer pulled the bikini-clad girl to the ground, then used his knees to pin her down. He also pointed his gun at other teens and cursed.

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Demonstrators gather near a community pool Monday, June 8, 2015, during a protest in response to an …

The girl claimed the officer told her to walk away but forced her down after "he thought we were saying rude stuff to him," according to an interview she gave to television station KDFW.

"He grabbed me, twisted my arm on my back and shoved me in the grass and started pulling the back of my braids," Dajerria Becton, 15, told the station. "I was telling him to get off me because my back was hurting bad."

"I understand how he was feeling, everybody surrounding him," she said. "I don't think he should have pulled a gun out on 15-year-old kids."

Brandon Brooks, the teen who recorded the video, told KDFW that tensions rose after a white woman and a black teenager at the party had an altercation. He said the white woman told the teen "to go back to Section 8 housing," a reference to federal housing aid given to low-income families.

The comment holds extra significance in McKinney, which has been the target of lawsuits accusing its housing authority of racially segregating Section 8 housing. One long-running lawsuit was settled with a consent decree in 2012 that aimed to open up the west side to subsidized housing.

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The Craig Ranch neighborhood pool is shown on Monday, June 8, 2015, in McKinney, Texas. A McKinney p …

Brooks said that the officer was "out of line" and that he felt compelled to keep filming when Casebolt pulled out his gun.

"At that point, my heart did drop and I was scared that someone was going to get shot and possibly killed," he said.

McKinney Mayor Brian Loughmiller said city officials plan to meet with community leaders to discuss the incident.

"We really need to come together as a community," the mayor said.

On Monday night, hundreds of demonstrators marched from an elementary school to the pool in protest of Casebolt's actions. Some carried signs that said, "My skin color is not a crime," and, "Fire Eric Casebolt."

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The Craig Ranch neighborhood pool is shown on Monday, June 8, 2015, in McKinney, Texas. According to …

About a dozen counterprotesters held signs supporting police.

Separately, a smaller group of demonstrators gathered outside of the McKinney Police Department.

Nikki Perez, a black resident of McKinney, attended a City Council meeting Monday to express her concern over the officer's actions.

"I don't excuse the behavior of those teenagers, but if I call 911, then I wouldn't want that cop to respond," Perez said. "He blew his credibility when he opened his mouth and started cursing at the kids."

Robert Taylor, a criminology professor at the University of Texas at Dallas who has done studies for the McKinney Police Department, said both the officer and the teens at the pool party acted inappropriately.

The teens were not following police orders, he said, but the officer's decision to pull out his gun did not help.

"That's not the way we're trained," he said. "We're trained in policing to de-escalate problem encounters like this. ... Obviously, that officer lost his cool. No doubt about it."

Most people were released, except for one man arrested for interference with the duties of a police officer and evading arrest, police said.

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Associated Press writers Terry Wallace in Dallas and Mike Graczyk in Houston contributed to this report.

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Matthew 24 - World English Bible

^24:1Jesus went out from the temple, and was going on his way. His disciples came to him to show him the buildings of the temple. ^24:2But he answered them, "Don't you see all of these things? Most assuredly I tell you, there will not be left here one stone on another, that will not be thrown down."

^24:3As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things be? What is the sign of your coming, and of the end of the age?"

^24:4Jesus answered them, "Be careful that no one leads you astray. ^24:5For many will come in my name, saying, 'I am the Christ,' and will lead many astray. ^24:6You will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you aren't troubled, for all this must happen, but the end is not yet. ^24:7For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; and there will be famines, plagues, and earthquakes in various places. ^24:8But all these things are the beginning of birth pains. ^24:9Then they will deliver you up to oppression, and will kill you. You will be hated by all of the nations for my name's sake. ^24:10Then many will stumble, and will deliver up one another, and will hate one another. ^24:11Many false prophets will arise, and will lead many astray.^24:12Because iniquity will be multiplied, the love of many will grow cold. ^24:13But he who endures to the end, the same will be saved. ^24:14This Gospel of the Kingdom will be preached in the whole world for a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.

^24:15"When, therefore, you see the abomination of desolation, which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), ^24:16then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. ^24:17Let him who is on the housetop not go down to take out things that are in his house. ^24:18Let him who is in the field not return back to get his clothes.^24:19But woe to those who are with child and to nursing mothers in those days! ^24:20Pray that your flight will not be in the winter, nor on a Sabbath, ^24:21for then there will be great oppression, such as has not been from the beginning of the world until now, no, nor ever will be. ^24:22Unless those days had been shortened, no flesh would have been saved. But for the sake of the chosen ones, those days will be shortened.

^24:23"Then if any man tells you, 'Behold, here is the Christ,' or, 'There,' don't believe it. ^24:24For there will arise false christs, and false prophets, and they will show great signs and wonders, so as to lead astray, if possible, even the chosen ones.

^24:25"Behold, I have told you beforehand. ^24:26If therefore they tell you, 'Behold, he is in the wilderness,' don't go out; 'Behold, he is in the inner chambers,' don't believe it. ^24:27For as the lightning comes forth from the east, and is seen even to the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. ^24:28For wherever the carcass is, there will the vultures be gathered together. ^24:29But immediately after the oppression of those days, the sun will be darkened, the moon will not give its light, the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken; ^24:30and then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky. Then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory.^24:31He will send out his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together his chosen ones from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.

^24:32"Now from the fig tree learn this parable. When its branch has now become tender, and puts forth its leaves, you know that the summer is near. ^24:33Even so you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near, even at the doors. ^24:34Most assuredly I tell you, this generation will not pass away, until all these things are accomplished. ^24:35Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. ^24:36But no one knows of that day and hour, not even the angels of heaven, but my Father only.

^24:37"As the days of Noah were, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. ^24:38For as in those days which were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, ^24:39and they didn't know until the flood came, and took them all away, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. ^24:40Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and one will be left; ^24:41two women grinding at the mill, one will be taken and one will be left.^24:42Watch therefore, for you don't know in what hour your Lord comes. ^24:43But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what watch of the night the thief was coming, he would have watched, and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. ^24:44Therefore also be ready, for in an hour that you don't expect, the Son of Man will come.

^24:45"Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his lord has set over his household, to give them their food in due season?^24:46Blessed is that servant whom his lord finds doing so when he comes. ^24:47Most assuredly I tell you that he will set him over all that he has. ^24:48But if that evil servant should say in his heart, 'My lord is delaying his coming,' ^24:49and begins to beat his fellow-servants, and eat and drink with the drunken, ^24:50the lord of that servant will come in a day when he doesn't expect it, and in an hour when he doesn't know it, ^24:51and will cut him in pieces, and appoint his portion with the hypocrites; there is where the weeping and grinding of teeth will be.

ABC News Videos
Kalief Browder, Teen Held at Rikers for Three Years With No Charges, Commits Suicide

By Katie Reilly

NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio on Monday vowed to push reforms at the city's troubled Rikers Island prison complex after the reported weekend suicide of a 22-year-old man who had been held there for three years without being convicted of a crime.

Kalief Browder was 16 when he was arrested and charged with stealing a backpack, in a case that gained national attention after The New Yorker magazine published a detailed account of the abuse the Bronx teenager endured in jail, during which time he attempted suicide several times.

Browder killed himself on Saturday, the magazine reported, citing his attorney, Paul Prestia. The attorney did not respond to requests for comment on Monday.

Browder maintained his innocence and was released in May 2013 when prosecutors dismissed his case, but he continued to struggle with mental illness, according to the magazine.

"Kalief's story helped inspire our efforts on Rikers Island, where we are working to ensure no New Yorkers spend years in jail waiting for their day in court," de Blasio said in a statement Monday. "There is no reason he should have gone through this ordeal, and his tragic death is a reminder that we must continue to work each day to provide the mental health services so many New Yorkers need."

Rikers Island, one of the largest U.S. jails, which can house up to 15,000 inmates, has gained notoriety over the past year for a culture of violence, including attacks by correction officers on prisoners and the deaths of multiple inmates in custody.

The federal government in December said it would sue New York City after finding widespread violations of teenage inmates' civil rights at the complex, which houses 11,400 prisoners on an average day.

In April, The New Yorker published two videos obtained from Rikers surveillance cameras that showed attacks on Browder by officers and other inmates, fueling the push by politicians and advocates to reform the facility.

(Reporting by Katie Reilly; Editing by Scott Malone and Eric Walsh)

Calls for prison reform after ex-inmate's suicide

Kalief Browder spent three years in a New York jail as a teenager without being convicted of a crime.
Suspected of stealing a backpack