老澳门开奖结果

PHOENIX 鈥� U.S. District Judge Roslyn O. Silver found on June 30 that the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation, and Reentry (ADCRR) systematically violates the constitutional rights of persons incarcerated in the state鈥檚 prisons by failing to provide them minimally adequate medical and mental health care, and by subjecting them to harsh and deprived conditions in solitary confinement units.

鈥淛udge Silver鈥檚 ruling is a victory for the Constitution and the rule of law, and a vindication for the many thousands who have endured the appalling conditions in Arizona prisons,鈥� said David Fathi, director of the 老澳门开奖结果 National Prison Project. 鈥淲e are heartened by this landmark decision, and expect state officials to comply with it immediately.鈥�

The lawsuit, Jensen v. Shinn, is part of a decade-long struggle to ensure that the nearly 30,000 adults and children in Arizona鈥檚 prisons receive the basic health care and minimally adequate conditions to which they are entitled under the law. Plaintiffs in the case are represented by the 老澳门开奖结果鈥檚 National Prison Project, the 老澳门开奖结果 of Arizona, Prison Law Office, Arizona Center for Disability Law, and the law firm of Perkins Coie LLP.

鈥淧eople in prison have a right to basic and adequate health care under the Eighth Amendment, and a prison sentence should never become a death sentence for people with treatable medical and mental health conditions,鈥� said Rita Lomio, attorney at the Prison Law Office. 鈥淭he court鈥檚 order affirms this bedrock constitutional principle.鈥�

In the ruling, Judge Silver found that the ADCRR has 鈥渇ailed to provide, and continues to refuse to provide, a constitutionally adequate medical care and mental health care system for all prisoners,鈥� and that the prisons鈥� 鈥渉ealth care system is plainly grossly inadequate. Defendants have been aware of their failures for years and Defendants have refused to take necessary actions to remedy the failures.鈥�

鈥淭he indefinite use of solitary confinement, especially for vulnerable populations like children or people with mental illness, violates the U.S. Constitution and all norms of basic human rights,鈥� said Maya Abela, deputy legal director at the Arizona Center for Disability Law. 鈥淎t trial, Arizona prison officials and staff admitted to chronic understaffing and routine falsification of data. Evidence showed people in these units often went days without receiving food or being allowed out of their cells for even a shower.鈥�

Judge Silver also found that Arizona鈥檚 overuse of solitary confinement causes grave harm to the adults and children in state prisons who endure it. Specifically, she found that ADCRR keeps 鈥渢housands of prisoners in restrictive housing units where they are not provided adequate nutrition, nor are they provided meaningful out-of-cell time for exercise or social interaction. Defendants鈥� treatment of prisoners in restrictive housing units results in the deprivation of basic human needs. For years, Defendants have known of the deficiencies, highlighted by Court intervention and direction, and refused to take meaningful remedial actions.鈥�

鈥淔or too long, Arizona state officials have purposefully looked the other way and provided no meaningful oversight of the horrific healthcare in Arizona prisons. I hope today starts to change that,鈥� said Daniel Barr, a partner in the Phoenix office of Perkins Coie LLP. 鈥淚 thank the three judges who have handled this case over the past 10 years 鈥� Judge Silver and Judges David Duncan and Neil Wake 鈥� and for all they have done to make this day possible.鈥�

Judge Silver鈥檚 ruling came after a 15-day trial held in November and December 2021, where the evidence showed that incarcerated people suffered excruciating pain, permanent injuries, and preventable deaths due to the state鈥檚 failure to provide health care. The evidence presented at trial includes expert testimony regarding unconstitutional , , the of and , and .

The class action lawsuit was originally filed in 2012 against ADCRR, on behalf of all persons incarcerated in the state鈥檚 10 prisons. That case resulted in a 2014 court-approved settlement that was meant to protect the rights and health of incarcerated persons. The federal judges overseeing the implementation of the reforms issued numerous enforcement orders and twice found state prison officials in contempt, fining the state more than $2.5 million for their for-profit health care contractors鈥� failure to provide basic health care to incarcerated people. In July 2021, Judge Silver set aside the settlement agreement due to ADCRR鈥檚 鈥減ervasive material breaches鈥� of the agreement, and set the case for trial.

A copy of the court鈥檚 order is available here:

Learn more about the Jensen v. Shinn case here: