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“Frozen in Solitude’’: Heat-Sensitive Texas Prisoners Get More Than Air Conditioning Locked Inside Former Segregation Cells
Loaded on Sept. 15, 2023
by Matthew Clarke
published in Prison Legal News
September, 2023, page 1
Filed under:
Exposure to Cold,
Exposure to Heat,
Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement.
Location:
Texas.
by Matt Clarke
After the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) settled a lawsuit over life-threatening excessive heat at the Wallace Pack Unit in 2018, it realized it needed to apply the suit’s heat-sensitivity criteria systemwide – and found a quick solution.
For years, officials had been …
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More from this issue:
- “Frozen in Solitude’’: Heat-Sensitive Texas Prisoners Get More Than Air Conditioning Locked Inside Former Segregation Cells, by Matthew Clarke
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Four Hawaii Prison Guards Sentenced for Beating Prisoner – But One Wins Back-Pay, by David Reutter
- Sheriffs Offered Caribbean Cruises and Florida Retreats As Part Of Jail Telecom Contracts, by Hayden Betts
- $1 Million Settlement Reached After Detainee’s Suicide in Washington Jail, by David Reutter
- Arkansas Parole Board Denies Release to Sex Offender For Failure to Find Appropriate Housing, by David Reutter
- The Lecturer at the Lockup: Maine Prisoner Is First to Teach College Courses from His Cell
- Unyielding Pursuit of Justice or Unfulfilled Promises: Doubts Surround California Habeas Attorney
- After $300,000 Settlement for Detainee’s Death, Texas County Looks to Replace Jail
- LGBTQ+ Detainees at Rikers Island Suffer Under Mayor Adams, by Kevin Bliss
- $8.25 Million Verdict Against Former Colorado Sheriff for Detainee’s Sexual Assault During Jail Transfer, by Matthew Clarke
- Life Sentence for Alabama Jail Escapee After Suicide of Guard Lover Who Helped Him, by Chuck Sharman
- Calls for California Sheriff’s Department Oversight After Jail Deaths, $30,000 Settlement for Botched Traffic Stop
- Innovative Brazilian Prison Claims “Here the Man Enters, the Crime Stays Outside”
- Oregon Parole Hearing Exclusion Rule Invalidated, by David Reutter
- U.S. Marshals Pull Out of Virginia Jail After Two Escapes in One Day
- BOP Guard, Nurse in Virginia Indicted in Prisoner’s Death
- Government Watchdog Adds BOP to List at “High Risk” of Mismanagement, by Kevin Bliss
- Washington Supreme Court: Requiring Certificate of Merit for Medical Malpractice Suits Held Invalid
- Four Deaths in Seven Weeks at Pennsylvania Prison
- Two Dead and $4.675 Million Paid After Deputies’ Alleged Misconduct in California’s Sonoma County, by Casey Bastian
- Congress Forces BOP to Upgrade Security Cameras, by Mark Wilson
- Prisoner Health Update: Over-the-Counter Medications, by Eike Blohm, MD
- San Diego County Pays $4.35 Million After Jail Guards Failed to Stop Detainee From Blinding Herself, by David Reutter
- New York Prison System Found Liable for Failure to Protect Prisoner from Assault
- Insider Trading Charges Dropped Against JPay Founder, by Matthew Clarke
- Prison Ministry Sues Indiana Jail Over Book Ban
- Five Years After Limiting Personal Visits and Banning Mail, Drug Use Worse in Pennsylvania Prisons
- FBI Crime Report Lacking Data from Police Agencies Serving 25 Percent of U.S. Population
- At Massive and Corrupt Philippine Prison, Contraband Includes Jacuzzis and Horses, by Kevin Bliss
- Incarceration Increases Death Risk for Cancer Patients
- $120,000 Paid to Muslim Detainees for Discrimination by Maryland Jail, by David Reutter
- Oregon Will Hold Release Hearings for 73 Prisoners Sentenced to LWOP as Juveniles, by Mark Wilson
- Senators Slam “Egregious” Prisoner Sexual Abuse by BOP Employees, by Mark Wilson
- Federal Watchdog Finds BOP Staffing, Maintenance in Crisis
- Minnesota Supreme Court Denies Qualified Immunity for Delayed Transfer of Sex Offenders, by Mark Wilson
- Former BOP Employees Guilty of Assaulting a Prisoner and Taking Bribes at Troubled Federal Prison in Massachusetts
- Second Circuit Affirms $600,000 Punitive Damage Award to New York Prisoner Brutally Beaten by Guards, by Kevin Bliss
- Aramark Sparks Nevada Prison Hunger Strike, by Mark Wilson
- “Be Christian or Be Penalized”: After Fourth Circuit Revives Muslim Prisoner’s Challenge, Virginia Jail Settles Suit for $30,000, by Douglas Ankney
- HRDC Granted Injunction to End Censorship in Arkansas Jail, by David Reutter
- $50,002 Jury Award to Illinois Prisoner Retaliated Against for Daughter’s Facebook Posts, by David Reutter
- As e-Messaging Takes Off in U.S. Prisons, Complaints Over Service and Costs Multiply, by David Reutter
- Maryland Sheriff Charged with Illegally Procuring Machine Guns from ATF, by Kevin Bliss
- California Guard Charged with Raping 22 Prisoners
- Nevada Pays $75,000 for Religious Discrimination Claims of Prisoners in Episcopal and The Way Faith Groups, by David Reutter
- California Supreme Court Remands Guards’ Overturned Murder Convictions In Detainee Death At Santa Clara County Jail
- Former Connecticut Prisoner’s Challenge Proceeds Against “Pay-to-Stay” Fees
- Alabama Denies Parole to 90% of Eligible Prisoners
- No Summary Judgment for Private Transportation Company in Maryland Detainee’s Suit Alleging “Horrific” 2,000-Mile Journey, by Keith Sanders
- $5,000 Settlement for Warrantless Search of Pro Se North Carolina Prisoner’s Cellphone, by Matthew Clarke
- Challenge Survives to Maryland County’s Cash Bond Program, by David Reutter
- Shocking Video Footage Reveals Rampant Violence and Neglect in Los Angeles County Jails
- Oregon Governor Commutes All Death Sentences, by Mark Wilson
- Voting Rights Restoration for Virginia Ex-Felons Once Again Subject to Governor’s Whim, by Kevin Bliss
- Doctor Convicted of Sexually Abusing USA Gymnasts Is Stabbed in Prison Cell
- Solitary Confinement is a Catch-22 for Colorado Prisoners and a “Moral Injury” for Mental Health Workers
- Exasperated Federal Judge Issues Permanent Injunction to Arizona DOC in Healthcare Class-Action, by Matthew Clarke
- News in Brief
More from Matthew Clarke:
- Federal Court Grants HRDC Preliminary Injunction Against Mail Censorship at New Mexico Jail, May 1, 2026
- Faced with Record-Breaking Jail Deaths, L.A. County Supervisors Tell Sheriff’s Department to Improve Access to Naloxone, Camera Monitoring, and Security Checks at California Jail, May 1, 2026
- Federal Court Places Medical Care in Arizona Prisons Under Receivership, May 1, 2026
- Seventh Circuit Upholds Liability but Reverses Damages in Lawsuit Over Illinois Warden and Investigator Using Prisoner as Bait to Catch Staff Member Raping Her, May 1, 2026
- Texas Moves to Restrict Cashless Bond and Reverse Federal Court-Ordered Misdemeanor Bail Reform, May 1, 2026
- In Texas, Harris County Commissioners Approve $1.2 Million for Fourth Study of Jail Since 2020 After Dozens of Abuse Allegations, April 1, 2026
- Texas Attorney General Clarifies Scope of Statute Requiring Outside Agency Investigation of Jail Deaths, April 1, 2026
- D.C. Judge Blocks Transfer of Biden-Commuted Federal Death Row Prisoners to “Supermax,” Citing Lack of Meaningful Due Process, April 1, 2026
- Eighth Circuit Revives Lawsuit Over Iowa Jail Detainee’s Suicide, April 1, 2026
- Groundbreaking Statistical Study of Pregnant Texas Jail Detainees Finds Over 400 Monthly, April 1, 2026
More from these topics:
- New York Juvenile Detention Officials Sued for Abusing Adolescents with Solitary Confinement, May 1, 2026. Sanitation, Lockdowns, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Juvenile Prisons, Confinement in Segregated Housing.
- 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).
- Class Certification Granted to Suit Challenging Suspension of HALT Act in New York Prisons, April 1, 2026. Injunctions, Class Certification, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Guard Unions, Administrative Detention/Segregation.
- 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.
- D.C. Judge Blocks Transfer of Biden-Commuted Federal Death Row Prisoners to “Supermax,” Citing Lack of Meaningful Due Process, April 1, 2026. Transfers, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Fifth Amendment, Bureau of Prisons (BOP), Prison Classification.
- New York City Mayor Appoints Ex-Rikers Prisoner as Corrections Commissioner, March 1, 2026. Prison Reform, Staffing, Control Units/SHU/Solitary Confinement, Guard Unions, Administrative Detention/Segregation.
- 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.
- 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.
- Two Mississippi Prisons Lose Power During Winter Storm, Feb. 1, 2026. DOC/BOP misconduct, Exposure to Cold, Negligence/Reckless Endangerment.
- Missouri Prisoners Forced to Shovel Snow in Subzero Temperatures, Feb. 1, 2026. Retaliatory Segregation, Prison Labor, Work Conditions/Safety, Exposure to Cold, Administrative Detention/Segregation.

