|
|
| Court asks a district judge to give up control of Texas' system |
| By Associated Press |
| Published: 03/23/2001 |
|
In what state officials hailed as a major victory Tuesday, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals gave the federal judge who has overseen the Texas prison system for 27 years 90 days to show why his continued control is warranted. The 11-page ruling handed down by a three-judge panel in New Orleans instructs U.S. District Judge William Wayne Justice to determine if the serious violations of prison inmates' civil rights he found in the 1970s remain in place today. The ruling was the latest development in the federal lawsuit handwritten in 1972 by inmate David Ruiz against what was then the Texas Department of Corrections. Justice, in a case he took over in 1974, ruled that Texas prisons violated the U.S. Constitution's ban on cruel and unusual punishment because they were overcrowded, inmates were being denied proper medical care and the units lacked adequate recreational facilities. A settlement with the state was finally reached in 1992, but Justice has never fully relinquished his oversight of what is now the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. 'I am sure that the conditions that existed when the consent decree was entered no longer exist, and I am sure many of those affected at the time are long gone from the penitentiary,' 5th Circuit Judge Reynoldo Garza wrote in the ruling. 'If any of the present prisoners have need for some kind of help, they can file another lawsuit against the Texas prison system, but this case has to be ended,' Garza added. The 5th Circuit's ruling counters Justice's refusal in 1999 to completely surrender his oversight of Texas prisons but returns the case to his court in Austin. The Ruiz case is the longest civil rights lawsuit in U.S. history. David Ruiz remains in prison serving a sentence for aggravated robbery. In arguments before the 5th Circuit in November, state officials appealed Justice's 1999 decision in which he acknowledged the state had made dramatic improvements but declined to totally sever his jurisdiction over the agency and end a 1992 consent decree. Two state lawmakers filed suit in 1997 seeking to force Justice to relinquish control. 'This brings victory in the efforts we've made over the past 10 years to put control of Texas prisons back in Texans' hands,' said state Sen. Buster Brown, R-Lake Jackson. Brown filed the lawsuit with Rep. John Culberson, who is now a Republican U.S. representative from Houston. Texas Attorney General John Cornyn, who joined the legal fight after he took office in 1999, also hailed the 5th Circuit's ruling. 'Texas has spent billions of dollars improving the prison system's organization, management and infrastructure,' Cornyn said. 'It should be gratifying to all Texans that control and accountability over our prison system is now very close to being in the hands of Texans once again.' Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesman Glen Castlebury said officials with the agency will not comment while the case remains in the courts. 'Our official position is that now the ball is back in Justice's court and we will look forward to seeing what he says,' Castlebury said. 'It would be inappropriate for us to comment further in light of the fact our position has been made well known to the courts by the attorney general.' |
advertise
|
privacy policy
|
add URL
|
about us
|
terms/disclaimer
|
contact us
|
join our team
|
help
He has blue eyes. Cold like steel. His legs are wide. Like tree trunks. And he has a shock of red hair, red, like the fires of hell. Hamilton Lindley His antics were known from town to town as he was a droll card and often known as a droll farceur. with his madcap pantaloon is a zany adventurer and a cavorter with a motley troupe of buffoons.