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As Climate Changes, High Temperatures Plague Prisons and Jails
by Matt Clarke
At a September 2019 hearing, a U.S. District Court judge threatened to throw officials with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) into the same excessively hot prison cells that the agency had failed to air condition.
Despite agreeing in 2018 to install cooling …
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More from this issue:
- News in Brief
- Alaska Pays $400,000 to Settle Jail Prisoner’s Wrongful Death Suit, by Douglas Ankney
- Report: Summit Food Services Provides Inadequate Nutrition at Missouri Jail, by Kevin Bliss
- Maricopa County Pays $300,000 to Settle Lawsuit Over Arpaio-Era Prisoner Death, by Matthew Clarke
- Mississippi Prison Deaths Spike for Second Year; Disturbing Photos Revealed, by Matthew Clarke, David M. Reutter
- Illinois DOC Interferes with Prisoners’ College Program by Removing Books, by Edward Lyon
- Lawsuits Challenge Florida Law that Undermines Voting Rights Ballot Initiative, by David M. Reutter
- Third Circuit Affirms Refusal to Appoint Successive Counsel in Prisoner’s Civil Rights Case, by David M. Reutter
- Oregon Sheriff Places Own Head on the Chopping Block for Budget Cuts, by Kevin Bliss
- $2 Million Settlement in Lawsuit Over California Jail Prisoner’s Suicide, by Matthew Clarke
- California Court of Appeal Reverses Convictions for Possession of Marijuana in Prison, by Dale Chappell
- Second Circuit: Discharge Health Plan Part of In-Custody Mental Health Treatment When Pretrial Detainees Released, by Edward Lyon
- Oregon Supreme Court Reverses Course: Secretly Taping Prisoner’s Statements Does Not Violate Right to Counsel, by Mark Wilson
- Arizona DOC Publishes, Then Rescinds, Prison Tour Policy that Excluded Public Officials and Media, by Matthew Clarke
- Denver Tries to End Private Prison Companies’ Halfway House Contracts, by Matthew Clarke
- Lawsuit: Woman Gave Birth Alone in Colorado Jail Cell, by Kevin Bliss
- Connecticut Prison Writing Program Leads to Lawsuits, by David M. Reutter
- Third Circuit: Showers Part of Prison Operations for ADA and RA Purposes, by David M. Reutter
- Investigations into Texas Jail Deaths Find Thousands of Guards Untrained, on Temporary Licenses, by Matthew Clarke
- Former DOC Employee Awarded $300,000 in Workplace Sexual Harassment Case, by Matthew Clarke
- New York State Prisoner Wins Medical Malpractice Suit, Awarded $30,000, by Edward Lyon
- As Climate Changes, High Temperatures Plague Prisons and Jails, by Matthew Clarke
- Former Hawaii Prisoner’s Sexual Assault Lawsuit Settles for Paltry $10,000, by Edward Lyon
- The Sentencing Project Issues Report on Reducing Excessive Punishment for Violent Crimes, by Matthew Clarke
- California Federal Court Orders City to Pay $150,000 for Failure to Comply with Jail Settlement, by Chad Marks
- Fourth Circuit: Three Tasings in 70 Seconds May Constitute Excessive Force, by David M. Reutter
- California Prisoner Wins $365,000 Settlement for Assault by Jail Guards, by Scott Grammer
- Denial of Summary Judgment for Prison Officials Affirmed in West Virginia Excessive Force Case, by Scott Grammer
- Michigan Prisoner Prevails in First Amendment Retaliation Case; $30,000 in Damages and Attorney Fees, by David M. Reutter
- Cook County, Illinois to Pay $1.7 Million for Former Marine’s Suicide in Jail, by Douglas Ankney
- Court Grants Remittitur in Former Prison Teacher’s Sexual Harassment Case – Total Award of $6.4 Million Plus Fees, Costs, Interest, by Matthew Clarke
- Arizona Prisoner Receives $175,000 after Guards Read His Legal Mail, Shared it with FBI and Prosecutors, by Matthew Clarke
- Author John Grisham Pens Editorial Criticizing Death Penalty in North Carolina, by Scott Grammer
- Santa Clara County Jail Captain Accused of Misconduct, Retires, by Scott Grammer
- Family of California Prisoner Who Committed Suicide Settles Suit for $595,000, by Scott Grammer
- California County Settles Jail Death for $300,000, by Edward Lyon
- Alabama Jail Prisoner Accused of Conspiring to Get Pregnant, Claiming Rape, by Douglas Ankney
- Tenth Circuit Reverses Dismissal of New Mexico Prisoner’s First Amendment Claims, by Scott Grammer
- North Carolina Prisoners Sue Over Gang Violence, Obtain $62,500 Settlement
- Hepatitis C Treatment Ordered in North Carolina Prisons, by David M. Reutter
- $157,000 Settlement in Michigan DOC Employee Discrimination Case, by David M. Reutter
- Congressional Black Caucus Institute Accepts Donations from Private Prison Companies, by Matthew Clarke
- Exploiting Prisoners on Prime Time, by Edward Lyon
- Three Louisiana Prisoners Cleared in 1994 Rape of Another Prisoner, by David M. Reutter
- Veteran Oregon Jail Guard Indicted and Jailed, by Mark Wilson
- Federal Court Sanctions New Mexico Corrections Department Over Out-of-State Legal Mail, by Matthew Clarke
- Survey: Jail Population Down but Incarceration Rates Higher for Whites, Women, by Jayson Hawkins
- Why Our Movement Can’t Afford to Ignore Private Prison Corporations, by Caroline Isaacs
- Audit Finds Mississippi Private Prison Plagued by Violence, Run by Gangs, by Kevin Bliss
- Infamous Louisiana Sheriff on His Way Out, by David M. Reutter
- San Francisco to Cut Costs for Jail Phone Calls, Commissary Sales, by Edward Lyon
- Vermont Supreme Court Remands Prison Correspondence Claim, by Edward Lyon
- Class Certified in Lawsuit Challenging Missouri Parole Violation Procedures, by David M. Reutter
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Mentally Ill Prisoners’ Suit Against GEO Group Survives Motion to Dismiss, by Douglas Ankney
- California Tried to Fix Its Prisons. Now County Jails Are More Deadly, by Jason Pohl, Ryan Gabrielson
More from Matthew Clarke:
- CoreCivic’s Long Record of Abuse and Neglect in Tennessee, June 1, 2026
- Dallas County Jail Deaths, Many Preventable, Dramatically Increase Under Sheriff Marian Brown, June 1, 2026
- Ninth Circuit Lets Stand Ruling That Federal Prisoners’ Gradually Accumulated Savings Are Subject to Restitution Turnover, June 1, 2026
- Seventh Circuit Reinstates Illinois Prisoner’s Lawsuit Against Prison Dental Staff, June 1, 2026
- Nebraska Lifts Suspension of Native American Religious Practices Hours Prior to Federal Court Hearing, June 1, 2026
- Florida Federal Court Excoriates BOP for Health Care Failures, Grants Prisoner Early Release to Seek Treatment for Possible Breast Cancer, June 1, 2026
- Eighth Circuit Dismisses Federal Prisoner’s Challenge to BOP Denying His Request for Expedited Transfer to Prerelease Custody, June 1, 2026
- Federal Court Partially Enjoins Enforcement of Georgia’s S.B. 185 Prohibiting Gender-Affirming Health Care in DOC, June 1, 2026
- Federal Jury Awards $2,500 to Male Wisconsin Prisoner Sexually Assaulted by Female Guard, June 1, 2026
- Federal Court Grants HRDC Preliminary Injunction Against Mail Censorship at New Mexico Jail, May 1, 2026
More from these topics:
- Federal Judge Upholds Infamously Brutal Farm Labor at Angola Prison, June 1, 2026. Racial Discrimination, Prison Labor, Exposure to Heat, Cruel and Unusual Punishment, Deliberate Indifference.
- Texas Officials Testify That Cost to Air Condition Prisons Tops $1.5 Billion, May 1, 2026. Eighth Amendment, Exposure to Heat, Administrative Exhaustion (PLRA), Deliberate Indifference, Prison Litigation Reform Act (PLRA).
- Texas Moves to Restrict Cashless Bond and Reverse Federal Court-Ordered Misdemeanor Bail Reform, May 1, 2026. Conditions of Confinement, Money/Property, Bail/Pretrial Release, Civil Rights Actions or Offenses/Bivens Actions, Plea Agreements/Guilty Pleas.
- Missouri Prisons Called Out for Incomplete Death Records, Hellish Solitary Heat, April 1, 2026. DOC/BOP misconduct, Systemic Medical Neglect, Exposure to Heat, Confinement in Segregated Housing, Deliberate Indifference.
- Constitutional Challenge to Louisiana Prison “Farm Line” Granted Class Certification, March 1, 2026. Prison Labor, Exposure to Heat, Injunctions (PLRA), Class Certification, Americans with Disabilities Act.
- New York Governor Pulls Plug on Prison Watchdog Funding, March 1, 2026. Guard Misconduct, Prison Reform, Conditions of Confinement, Guards/Staff, State Legislation.
- Utah Pushes for Additional $130 Million to Expand Prison that Cost $1 Billion, March 1, 2026. Cost of Prison Systems, Conditions of Confinement, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), State Legislation, Reduction of Prison Population.
- Deportation of Kenyan Priest Working as Texas Prison Guard Highlights TDCJ’s Dependence on Immigrant Staff, Feb. 1, 2026. Staffing, Exposure to Heat, Guards/Staff, Deportation/Removal/Exclusion, Detention - Generally.
- California Funds $38 Million Pilot Program to Investigate Methods for Cooling Three Prisons, Jan. 1, 2026. DOC/BOP misconduct, Systemic Medical Neglect, Eighth Amendment, Exposure to Heat, Deliberate Indifference.
- Prisoners and Detainees in the Gulf Coast Are Particularly at Risk from Natural Disasters, Dec. 1, 2025. Statistics/Trends, Shelter, Exposure to Heat, Hurricane Katrina, Immigration Detention.

