Battle v. Anderson

• Decision Date: 30 May 1974
• Docket Number: Civ. No. 72-95.
• Citation: 376 F. Supp. 402
• Parties: Bobby BATTLE, Plaintiff, United States of America, Plaintiff-Intervenor, v. Park J. ANDERSON, Warden et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Oklahoma

376 F. Supp. 402

Bobby BATTLE, Plaintiff, United States of America, Plaintiff-Intervenor, v. Park J. ANDERSON, Warden et al., Defendants.

Civ. No. 72-95.

United States District Court, E. D. Oklahoma.

May 30, 1974.

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Mary E. Bane and Stephen Jones, Oklahoma City, Okl., and the American Civil Liberties Union of Oklahoma, Oklahoma City, Okl., for plaintiff, Bobby Battle.

Jesse H. Queen, Quinlan J. Shea, Jr., Thomas R. Sheran, Charles N. Ory and Margie A. Utley, Dept. of Justice, Washington, D. C., for plaintiff-intervenor, United States.

Paul Crowe, Kay Karen Kennedy and Kenneth Deleshaw, Jr., Asst. Attys. Gen., Oklahoma City, Okl., for defendants, Leo McCracken, Roy Sprinkle, Sam C. Johnston, Captain Black, Danny Nace and Otis P. Campbell.

Willard Gotcher, McAlester, Okl., for defendant, Park J. Anderson.

MEMORANDUM OPINION

JUDGMENT, DECREE, INJUNCTION AND ORDER FOR REMEDIAL ACTION

BOHANON, District Judge.

Preliminary Statement

This case was initiated on April 24, 1972, with the filing of a pro se complaint by Bobby Battle, a prisoner at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary.

On July 27, 1972, plaintiff Battle filed an amended complaint on behalf of himself and other inmates of the Oklahoma State Penitentiary alleging deprivations of rights secured by the Federal Constitution and Civil Rights laws including the rights to due process and equal protection of the laws, to free speech, to petition for the redress of grievances, to have access to the courts and to be free from cruel and unusual punishment. The complaint seeks injunctive relief, on behalf of all members of the plaintiff class, to remedy the alleged misconduct of the defendants as well as monetary damages for plaintiff Battle.

Named as defendants were Leo McCracken, Director of Corrections, Park J. Anderson, Warden, and Sam C. Johnston, Deputy Warden of the State Penitentiary at McAlester. Since the commencement of this action, Leo McCracken has been replaced by John Grider, who now serves as Acting Director of Corrections, and Park J. Anderson has been replaced by Sam C. Johnston, who now serves as Acting Warden of the State Penitentiary at McAlester, and Mr. Pete Douglas has replaced Sam C. Johnston as Acting Deputy Warden. Mr. Roy Sprinkle, Deputy Director of Corrections in charge of Institutions, Captain Black, Danny Nace and Otis Campbell, Correctional Officers at the State Penitentiary, have been added as defendants.

On March 15, 1973, the late Judge Edwin Langley granted the United States' Motion to Intervene pursuant to Title IX of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. ? 2000h-2. The complaint in intervention alleged segregation by race in housing assignments and certain other aspects of penitentiary operations.

On March 5, 1974, the Court granted the United States' motion to amend its complaint in intervention which now alleges, in addition to the allegations of the original complaint in intervention, that the defendants have discriminated against black inmates in making job assignments and in the operation of the penitentiary disciplinary system; and that they have, with regard to all inmates of the Oklahoma State Penitentiary, without regard to race, subjected them to disciplinary procedures and taken disciplinary action against them without providing due process of law; subjected those inmates in disciplinary segregation to cruel and unusual punishment by depriving them of food, clothing, bedding, light and necessary personal hygiene items; placed inmates in non-disciplinary administrative segregation without providing them with due process of law and subjected them to unreasonable conditions of confinement; inflicted upon inmates summary punishment without due process of law and cruel and unusual punishment by the use of chemical agents, including mace and tear gas; inflicted upon inmates cruel and unusual punishment by maintaining and operating a medical care delivery system that is incapable of providing and has failed to provide adequate medical care; imposed upon inmates arbitrary and unreasonable restrictions on mailing privileges, including censorship and rejection of mail to and from attorneys, courts, government officials, family members and religious ministers; refused inmates the right to subscribe to or receive personal legal reference materials, as well as certain other periodicals; and denied inmates adequate access to the courts by failing to provide an adequate law library or any reasonable and adequate alternative thereto and by specifically refusing to permit inmates to have in their possession any personal legal reference materials or to assist each other on legal problems.

The parties have conducted extensive pretrial discovery consisting of depositions, inspections and investigations conducted by attorneys, FBI agents and experts in penology.

At the final pretrial conference held on March 4, 1974, counsel orally stipulated and agreed and the court ordered that all depositions taken prior to trial be admitted into evidence and made a part of the record.

Trial on the merits was heard at McAlester, Oklahoma, on March 14 and 15, 1974. At the outset, counsel for all parties stipulated and agreed to the authenticity of copies of documents marked exhibits 1 through 161 and contained in 18 bound volumes previously tendered to counsel and the court by the United States. It was further stipulated and agreed and the court ordered that the said exhibits be admitted into evidence and made a part of the record in this case.

Upon the basis of the depositions and exhibits and the oral testimony heard at the trial of this case and the cases of Holland et al. v. Anderson (No. 73-324) heard on March 12, 1974, and the consolidated cases of Barnett et al. v. Hall (No. 73-237), Johnson v. Anderson (No. 74-8), Barnett et al. v. Pontesso (No. 70-97) and Johnson et al. v. Anderson (No. 72-90) heard on March 13, 1974, the court makes its findings of fact and conclusions of law as follows:

Findings of Fact

1. The Oklahoma State Penitentiary system consists of a main maximum security facility at McAlester and several subsidiary institutions located at McAlester and other locations throughout the southeastern and western portion of Oklahoma. These subsidiaries include a dual unit women's ward and a male trusty unit which are also located at McAlester; a medium security vocational training school located at Stringtown, Oklahoma, about 40 miles south of McAlester; a smaller minimum security facility for vocational training located near Hodgens, Oklahoma; and an Honor farm near Farris, Oklahoma.

2. The Oklahoma State Penitentiary System was established by law for the purpose of housing persons committed to the custody of the Department of Corrections under the administrative direction and control of the Division of Institutions, Title 57 O.S.A. ? 509.

3. The Board of Corrections, composed of seven members appointed by the Governor, appoints the Director of the Department of Corrections. The Board has statutory authority to establish policies for the operation of the Department. Title 57 O.S.A. ?? 503, 504. The Director of the Department of Corrections is vested by statute with the authority and responsibility for the operation of all facilities within the department, for prescribing rules pertaining to the management of said institutions and for the control, care and treatment of inmates remanded to the custody of the Department of Corrections. Title 57 O.S.A. ?? 507 and 510. Such rules, when reduced to writing, are customarily promulgated in the form of departmental policy statements, but may also be issued in the form of operations memoranda.

The Deputy Director of Corrections in charge of Institutions is appointed by the Director and is charged with the administrative responsibility for the operation of all facilities within the Department of Corrections. Title 57 O.S.A. ?? 508, 509.

The Warden of the Oklahoma State Penitentiary at McAlester is vested by statute with the responsibility for performing all duties pertaining to the penitentiary as are fixed by the Director of Corrections. Title 57 O.S.A. ? 510. The established duties of the Warden include supervisory responsibility for the government and operation of the Oklahoma State Penitentiary at McAlester, Oklahoma, and its subsidiary units. Written rules issued pursuant to the authority of the Warden are promulgated in the form of memoranda, directives, etc.

4. All persons convicted of felonies and sentenced by duly constituted courts of the State of Oklahoma to a term of imprisonment which is not to be served in a county jail are committed to the custody of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections to be confined in one of the facilities subject to the jurisdiction of the Department. Title 57 O.S.A. ? 521.

5. Between January, 1970 and July 27, 1973, the total population in the penitentiary system averaged about 2,990 male and 120 female inmates. The largest concentration of inmates in the system was "behind the walls" at the main facility at McAlester.

6. On July 27, 1973, a riot occurred at the McAlester facility which resulted in the destruction of some physical facilities and damage to others. Following the riot, many programs, procedures, practices and operations that had been in effect at the penitentiary were either eliminated or curtailed. The general inmate population was placed on a twenty-four-hour lockdown which continued with only minor modifications at the time of the trial in this case. Numerous examples could be cited from the record of practices and conditions which were justified as emergency measures in the immediate aftermath of the riot and even for some time thereafter, but which were still in substantial effect at the time of the trial of this case, long after their justification had ended.

7. During the 7 months of 1973 prior to the riot,...