Legal action aims to force criminal justice department to air condition prisons, where 85,000 are at risk of heat illnesses
  • FollyDolly@lemmy.world
    0·
    3 months ago

    Ah yes, another day, another horror done deliberately and maliciously by my government. Great. I hope everyone of those monsters that enabled this to happen die a horrible heat related death.

  • Samvega@lemmy.blahaj.zoneOP
    0·
    3 months ago

    At Coffield, inmates were being forced to spend up to six hours in the exercise yard, known as the day room. The space is designed to provide respite for prisoners outside their cells, but has become a heat trap with no AC and no access to water.

    Robertson’s inquiries suggest that Wilson had spent up to five hours in the day room immediately before he collapsed in his cell. A TDCJ spokesperson declined to comment on Wilson’s death, saying the department “doesn’t comment on pending litigation”.

    […]

    Hanby wrote the letter from Coffield, where Wilson died. He described the conditions as “torture by heat – Texas is killing people every year who haven’t been sentenced to death”.

    The prisoner was being housed in “a tiny cell with sheet metal on the door for 24 hours a day”. He has high blood pressure and is fearful that he may not make it.

    “If I don’t survive this summer, TDCJ will use their favorite excuse and claim that I died of a heart attack,” he wrote. “That will be a lie. It will be the heat that claims me, and if not me, then so many others like me.”

  • PrincessLeiasCat@sh.itjust.works
    0·
    3 months ago

    The TDCJ denies that there have been any deaths caused by heat since 2012, insisting that fatalities during the summer months can be explained by inmates’ underlying medical conditions.

    Right, just like Covid never killed anyone either.

  • Cosmonauticus@lemmy.world
    0·
    3 months ago

    Despite what ppl tell you, prisoners are ppl. Treating murders, rapists, thieves, etc worse than they did their victims is not justice

    • mozz@mbin.grits.dev
      1·
      3 months ago

      One of the dead guys was sentenced for unlawful possession of a firearm. Not that he necessarily did anything with it; he just had it.

    • yeahiknow3@lemmy.dbzer0.com
      0·
      3 months ago

      Violent criminals are a fairly small fraction of total inmates, and a whopping 76% of the Texas jail population hasn’t even been convicted of a crime.

      Also, Texas loves rapists and most of them aren’t in prison anyway. Not to mention Abbott just pardoned that convicted homicidal murderer.

      • Crisps@lemmy.world
        0·
        3 months ago

        This is only local jails, which makes sense as people are waiting trial then move on to long term prison.

        • 31337@sh.itjust.works
          0·
          3 months ago

          In my local county (in Texas), there was a guy in jail for 5 years without trial (I think he’s going in 6 years without trial, but a go-fund-me paid his bail last year), and 2 years in jail without trial is not uncommon.

    • Lucidlethargy@sh.itjust.works
      01·
      3 months ago

      It actually might be justice, depending on their crimes… But I agree with treating prisoners well because countless prisoners don’t deserve anything remotely this bad. There are even a fair few innocent people in this broken system of ours.

  • cocobean@bookwormstory.socialEnglish
    0·
    3 months ago

    “it costs money to install AC”

    Sure, weak excuse, but let’s go with it – What’s the excuse for not giving water? They get water ONCE A DAY, if that? That’s just completely fucked and insane

  • Myxomatosis@lemmy.world
    0·
    3 months ago

    “The true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable members.” - Gandhi

  • reddig33@lemmy.world
    0·
    3 months ago

    As a Texan — please tell me what I can do to try to change this? I’m already voting. Is there a legal non profit I can donate to that is suing to change this?

    • JovialMicrobial@lemm.ee
      1·
      3 months ago

      https://civilrights.justice.gov/

      This is where you can report the prisons that are cooking people alive. They might already be aware of it since it hit the news though. Or you can report Texas for any of other civil rights violations they’ve been committing recently. It might not accomplish much, but they at least deserve to be investigated for their disturbing activity.

      Also, I feel like people in general should be aware that government website exists. I didn’t know about it until just now. Knowledge is power and all that.