The Nebraska prison system, plagued by years of overcrowding, staff turnover, unrest and violence, has been hit by a lawsuit filed by representatives of the inmates confined in its largest facilities. The lawsuit charges conditions at both men’s and women’s prisons amount to unconstitutional punishment. The lawsuit filed against the Department of Correctional Services calls the state prisons in Nebraska “a dangerous system in perpetual crisis.” Prisoners asking for a hearing claim they are “consistently deprived” of adequate medical attention, including mental health care. Some prisoners cite the use of solitary confinement, claiming it has aggravated their pre-existing mental illnesses. Disabled prisoners, including the blind and deaf, claim they are denied basic accommodations for their disabilities.
Amy Miller, lead attorney on the case, has eleven inmates listed in the lawsuit. “They provide a snapshot of what’s happening on medical care, dental care, mental health care, and overuse of solitary confinement,” Miller said. The lawsuit asks the U.S. District Court of Nebraska to expand the case into a class action suit that would cover all inmates imprisoned in state facilities. It requests the court require the state to develop a plan addressing each of the major concerns. “Simply put, we want the judge to order the state of Nebraska to run a prison system in a way that comports with the Constitution. All of these things need to be ordered by a federal judge, because we have not seen any movement from the executive branch to deliver it to the prisoners who are currently in their cells,” Miller said.
Danielle Conrad, the executive director of the ACLU’s Nebraska office, says the use of solitary confinement (or “restrictive housing” as it is called in Nebraska) is of particular concern. Conrad says this becomes a matter for the federal courts when treatment of inmates violates the Eighth Amendment of the United States Constitution.
Source: http://netnebraska.org/article/news/1092157/aclu-sues-nebraska-prison-ov…
