NCJ Number
165494
Date Published
1991
Length
19 pages
Annotation
This overview of jail inmate litigation in the 1990's discusses sources of jail overcrowding, some bases for inmate litigation, avenues for inmate litigation, some pitfalls for jail inmates seeking legal redress, and some recent jail inmate litigation trends in selected jurisdictions.
Abstract
During the past 10-15 years, public awareness of jail problems has been heightened. City, county, State, and Federal officials are increasingly under pressure to do something about jail conditions. Federal and State prison overcrowding is shifting the inmate housing burden to already overcrowded jails. Inmate litigation can have a positive influence on corrections, as it exerts pressure on chief executives, sheriffs, jailers, and correctional officers to act more responsibly in making jails safe and humane for all involved in their operations. One measure for minimizing the volume of jail inmate litigation is to establish internal administrative grievance procedures. Some jail systems have these grievance procedures, and some large jails have inmate councils to hear and resolve disputes between inmates that might otherwise lead to civil rights suits. By the year 2000, there will still be jail problems and inmate litigation. At the same time, many of the older jails will have been replaced by newer more sanitary ones. Because of jail space limitations and other exigencies, public policy shifts toward alternatives to confinement will have occurred. Although the courts will continue to block frivolous inmate lawsuits and inmate grievance procedures will attempt to resolve legitimate inmate complaints before they evolve into legal action, jail crowding and its attendant negative impact on jail conditions and inmate programs must be addressed before inmate lawsuits will significantly decrease.