NCJ Number
137532
Journal
National Prison Project Journal Volume: 7 Issue: 2 Dated: (Spring 1992) Pages: 4-5,14-15
Date Published
1992
Length
14 pages
Annotation
The Orleans Parish Prison in Louisiana was the subject of successful litigation more than 2 decades ago regarding its overcrowding and deplorable conditions; it also is under litigation that started in 1989 which does not yet have a clear outcome.
Abstract
Built in 1929, the prison was designed to house 400-450 inmates. By 1969 this population had doubled, leading to a lawsuit on the grounds that it violated the eighth amendment. The gains achieved by the 1970 decision in Hamilton v. Schiro have been completely offset by the subsequent expansion that has resulted in a complex of buildings and makeshift housing areas where between 4,500 and 5,000 prisoners are confined. The original litigation related mainly to the physical plant and correctional personnel. Physical deterioration, severe overcrowding in the jail, and lack of qualified and trained supervisors were identified as the crucial causes of the problems. Current problems include double, triple, and quadruple bunking; inmates sleeping on the floor; operation in a virtual lock-down status; inadequate medical services and confinement for months or years of persons awaiting transfer to a State hospital because of being adjudicated not guilty by reason of insanity or incompetent to stand trial. Since 1988, at the request of local attorneys and the local American Civil Liberties Union, the National Prison Project has been involved in legal challenges to the conditions at the prison. Their success will depend on the persistence of the attorneys, the attention of the court, and the lawful behavior of the defendants. Footnotes and photograph