Latest news with #EightAmendment
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Texas House advances bill requiring A/C in prisons; proposal's fate uncertain in Senate
The Texas House overwhelmingly passed legislation Thursday night to require air conditioning across the state's prison system, marking the third time in five years that the lower chamber has approved such a measure. The Senate has declined to take it up in the previous two sessions. The 89-43 vote comes less than two months after an Austin federal judge declared extreme heat in Texas prisons to be 'plainly unconstitutional' and warned lawmakers that he expects to order the state to install permanent air-conditioning systemwide. It also took place hours before a midnight cutoff for the House to pass bills originating in that chamber. House Bill 3006 is expected to face an uphill battle in the more conservative state Senate, which has repeatedly declined to hear similar proposals. Democratic state Rep. Terry Canales of Edinburg, a criminal defense attorney, said he filed the bill because the constant, sweltering heat in lockups is 'inhumane' and constitutes cruel and unusual punishment. 'Many people are not violent offenders,' he told the American-Statesman. 'They surely didn't get sentenced to death. But we're killing them. We're cooking people.' Over 60% of Texas inmates are being held on violent offenses, 15% on drug-related offenses and 9% on property offenses. The average prisoner is 41 years old, according to Texas 2036, a center-right policy think tank. Texas Department of Criminal Justice Director Bryan Collier has acknowledged that heat was a factor in three inmates' deaths from multiple causes in 2023. Prison guards and staff members also continue to fall ill from heat exposure, and the system struggled with a turnover rate of 26% in 2023, one of the hottest years in recent Texas history. HB 3006 outlines a three-phased approach that would require TDCJ to install climate control in one-third of its facilities by 2028, another one-third by 2030 and the final third of the facilities by 2032 — but only if it receives the funds to do so. The agency would be mandated to solicit competitive bids from private contractors to complete the project, and the cost would be capped at $100 million per phase. Canales described visiting the minimum-security prison in his hometown on a broiling Texas summer day, where the odor of male sweat is so strong that 'you can taste it' and where prisoners flood their cells with toilet water, then 'take turns lying in it' overnight to cool down. In a yearslong legal battle over the climate control in Texas prisons, plaintiffs are asking the court to require the state to maintain cell temperatures between 65 and 85 degrees, a similar range as Texas jails and federal prisons are required to maintain. Nearly 70% of cells in the state prison system lack air conditioning, according to a court filing in the lawsuit. On the state's current trajectory, it would take at least 25 years to ensure all cells are climate-controlled, which is "insufficient under the Eight Amendment," U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman found in his March ruling on a request for a preliminary injunction. Pitman urged Collier to prepare for an adverse final ruling that would require Texas to air-condition all cells, and he recently scheduled a jury trial for March 2026. TDCJ has installed nearly 48,000 "cool beds" in its system so far and is in the process of procuring 12,000 more. The agency received $85 million for additional air conditioning installation in 2023 and is requesting another $118 million for the next bieennium, which it says would allow for 16,000 more air-conditioned beds. That would bring the total number to 78,000 in a system that housed nearly 133,000 inmates in 2023. Even if a bill requiring A/C does not pass the Senate, it is likely that the prison system will receive more state funds to install air conditioning. State Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston, told the Texas Tribune that the state budget will include the $118 million the TDCJ has requested to install around 11,000 additional cool beds over the next two years. The state will also allocate $3 million for new dorms, which would be air conditioned, she wrote in the statement, the Tribune reported. Huffman did not respond to Statesman requests for comment. State Rep. Richard Hayes, R-Hickory Creek, said he voted against the proposal because he believed a federal judge had already required the state to install air conditioning in prisons. He also doesn't believe all prisoners need climate control, though he said some populations do. "We didn't have A/C when I was a kid," Hayes told the Statesman, adding that some military facilities also lack air conditioning. Canales, the House's second-most conservative Democrat as per the Texas Tribune's 2023 rankings, disagrees with lawmakers who view installing A/C as 'soft on crime.' Heat can increase aggression and cause disorientation among inmates, he said, making them more difficult to control for guards who also struggle in sweltering temperatures. 'It's not soft on crime,' Canales said. 'It's stupid on crime.' This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas House overwhelmingly passes bill to require A/C in state prisons
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Former prosecutor on Trump's idea to send US prisoners to El Salvador: ‘Abomination'
Harry Litman, a former U.S. attorney and deputy assistant attorney general, said President Trump's idea to send U.S. prisoners to El Salvador is an 'abomination.' Litman joined CNN News Central with Boris Sanchez on Monday after Trump met with El Salvador President Nayib Bukele at the White House to discuss deportations. He was sharply critical of the two leaders who have no plans to return a wrongfully deported Maryland man and the suggestion that U.S. prisoners could head to the Latin American mega-prison where Kilmar Abrego Garcia is being held. Last week, the Supreme Court ruled the U.S. must 'facilitate' the return of Abrego Garcia, but Trump and Bukele suggested they don't have the power to do so. The order offered the administration some wiggle room, as it was unclear if or when the man would return home. During the Monday meeting, administration officials mischaracterized the substance of the court's order, which the former Justice Department official called 'monstrous.' 'The attempt by the president to just say, 'Well, I say otherwise,' you can't say otherwise,' Litman said. 'That's the whole point.' Litman emphasized that it's a violation of Abrego Garcia's due process rights and it could cost him his life due to gang violence in the country. The discussion came as Trump and Bukele have strengthened their relationship following a $6 million deportation deal. Both leaders have avoided responsibility for Abrego Garcia's deportation and been at the center of a legal battle to return the Maryland man. Sanchez also asked Litman about Trump's recent claim that he would 'love' to send violent U.S. prisoners to El Salvador, but would need to check if it is legal first. 'Yes, there are terrible criminals here, but that doesn't mean you can torture them,' Litman replied, invoking the Eight Amendment, which prohibits excessive punishments. 'It's pernicious. This is really … even in this case, an abomination of a day with both those suggestions,' Litman said of Abrego Garcia's deportation and Trump's suggestion. 'I know you can hear it from my tone, but it is way, way beyond the pale, and just contempt for the Constitution and rule of law.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
15-04-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Former prosecutor on Trump's idea to send US prisoners to El Salvador: ‘Abomination'
Harry Litman, a former U.S. attorney and deputy assistant attorney general, said President Trump's idea to send U.S. prisoners to El Salvador is an 'abomination.' Litman joined CNN News Central with Boris Sanchez on Monday after Trump met with El Salvador President Nayib Bukele at the White House to discuss deportations. He was sharply critical of the two leaders who have no plans to return a wrongfully deported Maryland man and the suggestion that U.S. prisoners could head to the Latin American mega-prison where Kilmar Abrego Garcia is being held. Last week, the Supreme Court ruled that the U.S. must 'facilitate' the return of Abrego Garcia, but Trump and Bukele suggested they don't have the power to do so. The order offered the administration some wiggle room, as it was unclear if or when the man would return home. During the Monday meeting, administration officials mischaracterized the substance of the court's order, which the former Justice Department official called 'monstrous.' 'The attempt by the President to just say, 'Well, I say otherwise,' you can't say otherwise,' Litman said. 'That's the whole point.' Litman emphasized that it's a violation of Abrego Garcia's due process rights and it could cost him his life due to gang violence in the country. The discussion came as Trump and Bukele have strengthened their relationship following a $6 million deportation deal. Both leaders have avoided responsibility for Abrego Garcia's deportation and been at the center of a legal battle to return the Maryland man. Sanchez also asked Litman about Trump's recent claim that he would 'love' to send violent U.S. prisoners to El Salvador, but would need to check if it is legal first. 'Yes, there are terrible criminals here, but that doesn't mean you can torture them,' Litman replied, invoking the Eight Amendment, which prohibits excessive punishments. 'It's pernicious. This is really … even in this case, an abomination of a day with both those suggestions,' Litman said of Abrego Garcia's deportation and Trump's suggestion. 'I know you can hear it from my tone, but it is way, way beyond the pale, and just contempt for the Constitution and rule of law.'
Yahoo
12-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Louisiana attorney general files motion to resume Jessie Hoffman execution
BATON ROUGE, La. (Louisiana First) — Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill filed an emergency brief with the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals after a judge halted a death row inmate's execution. On Tuesday, Jessie Hoffman, who was expected to be executed by nitrogen hypoxia on March 18, temporarily evaded the penalty after a judge ruled in his favor, stating nitrogen hypoxia violated his constitutional rights. Murrill immediately responded by saying, 'We disagree with the district court's decision and will immediately appeal to the Fifth Circuit.' On Wednesday, the appeal was filed. 'Today, my team filed an emergency appeal with the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. There's nothing legally that prevents or stops us from moving forward with executing Jessie Hoffman if the preliminary injunction is vacated. I believe this execution is going to go forward as planned. We look forward to getting a decision soon from the Fifth Circuit,' said Murrill in a statement. She says the ruling represents the sort of 'last-minute intervention by a Federal Court' that the Supreme Court has repeatedly criticized. Murrill argues that this is an example because it rejects precedents from the Alabama district court, Eleventh Circuit and Supreme Court based on the same method of execution. 'If the district court were right, then the Supreme Court, the Eleventh Circuit, and the Alabama district courts have green-lighted four illegal executions,' Murrill wrote. The district court believed execution by firing squad is a feasible alternative, but Murrill says it is 'not how the Eight Amendment or death-penalty litigation works.' Trump makes third term remark during event with Irish prime minister Democrats are heading to GOP districts for town halls: 'We're filling a void' EPA signals it will slash climate and pollution rules, including for cars and power plants Louisiana attorney general files motion to resume Jessie Hoffman execution LSU climatologist warns DOGE NOAA cuts may disrupt weather forecasting Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
29-01-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Incarcerated Trans Woman Sues Trump Administration Over Executive Order That Would Place Her in a Men's Prison
Them' An incarcerated trans woman is suing the Trump administration over the President's recently issued anti-trans executive order. Trump signed the order, titled "Defending Women From Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,' on day one of his second term. In addition to mandating a strict, binary definition of gender and potentially invalidating X gender markers on passports, the order would bar incarcerated trans women from being housed in women's facilities and deny all trans inmates access to gender-affirming care. In response, an incarcerated trans woman known pseudonymously as Maria Moe filed a lawsuit against Trump in an attempt to block the order, on the basis that it violates the Constitution. The lawsuit claims that the order violates due process under the Fifth Amendment, and the Eight Amendment's rules against cruel and unusual punishment. The National Center for Lesbian Rights, G.L.B.T.Q. Advocates and Defenders, and private law firm Lowenstein Sandler filed the 24-page complaint in federal court in Massachusetts on Sunday, per the New York Times. It states that Moe 'has lived as a woman and has taken hormones continuously since she was a teenager,' and that her sex has been recorded in Bureau of Prisons (BOP) records as 'female' until recently. However, on January 25, Moe's sex was reportedly listed as 'male' in accordance with the executive order. According to the complaint, Moe was removed from the general population at her women's prison, placed in solitary confinement, and informed that she would be imminently transferred to a men's facility due to the executive order. The lawsuit states that Moe's safety will be significantly compromised if she is transferred to a men's facility, including being 'at an extremely high risk of harassment, abuse, violence, and sexual assault,' and experiencing 'worsening gender dysphoria.' Incarcerated trans women already experience greater risks than everyone else — according to the Marshall Project, only 10 of more than 1,000 trans women in federal prisons are incarcerated in women's facilities. Analysis from the Williams Institute has also shown that 37% of trans people report being assaulted while incarcerated, compared to 3.4% of non-trans people. Trans people are also more likely to be thrown in solitary confinement, at 28.2%, as opposed to 18.2% of non-trans people. Everything You Need to Know About Trump's Executive Order Attempting to Erase Trans Americans The president signed the sweeping order within hours of taking office, signaling that curtailing the rights of trans people is a top priority for his administration. Moe is requesting declaratory judgment stating that the executive order violates her rights, in addition to a preliminary injunction against the enforcement of the order. Moe's lawsuit comes in the wake of a settlement agreement between incarcerated trans woman Grace Pinson and the BOP, after Pinson filed dozens of lawsuits alleging that she had been repeatedly abused by fellow inmates and staff, and denied access to gender-affirming care. Pinson was paid $95,000 in exchange for dropping all of her remaining lawsuits against the BOP, according to The Marshall Project. Them has reached out to the National Center for Lesbian Rights. Get the best of what's queer. Sign up for Them's weekly newsletter here. Originally Appeared on them.
