Diamond v. Thompson, Civ. A. No. 3828-N

• Decision Date: 30 July 1973
• Docket Number: Civ. A. No. 3828-N,3900-N.
• Parties: Glenn DIAMOND et al., Plaintiffs, v. Glen THOMPSON et al., Defendants. Richard E. LAKE, Jr., Plaintiff, v. L. B. SULLIVAN et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Middle District of Alabama

364 F. Supp. 659

Glenn DIAMOND et al., Plaintiffs, v. Glen THOMPSON et al., Defendants.

Richard E. LAKE, Jr., Plaintiff, v. L. B. SULLIVAN et al., Defendants.

Civ. A. Nos. 3828-N, 3900-N.

United States District Court, M. D. Alabama, N. D.

July 30, 1973.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Wendell R. Morgan, Alton, Leavell, Morgan & Webb, Montgomery, Ala., for plaintiffs.

William J. Baxley, Atty. Gen. of Ala., and Richard F. Calhoun, Thomas W. Sorrells, Leslie Hall, and Barry E. Teague, Asst. Attys. Gen., for defendants.

FINDINGS OF FACT AND CONCLUSIONS OF LAW

JOHNSON, Chief Judge.

This is a class action brought by inmates of the Alabama Penal System confined at Mt. Meigs Medical and Diagnostic Center, Mt. Meigs, Alabama. Plaintiffs allege numerous violations of their First, Sixth, Eighth and Fourteenth Amendment rights and seek injunctive relief and return of certain personal property. The defendants are the Commissioner of the Alabama Board of Corrections, the former and present wardens, the deputy warden and the captain of the guards at Mt. Meigs. The two cases now decided were determined by the Court to present the same basic issues and were consolidated on January 19, 1973. The cause is submitted upon the pleadings, motions, depositions, testimony taken at trial, and briefs of the parties.

The plaintiffs claim they have been denied due process of law by the actions of the defendants in reclassifying and confining them to administrative segregation and punitive isolation, higher degrees of confinement than that of general population, without first providing plaintiffs with a meaningful hearing. In addition, plaintiffs charge that while confined in administrative segregation they have been denied access to legal materials and to writing materials necessary to petition the courts, and that they have been harassed and threatened for participation in legal proceedings. Plaintiffs further claim that they have been denied access to religious services and religious materials in the denominations of their choice; that they have been punished for participation in political discussions and for expression of political beliefs; and that they have been subjected to various degrees of physical brutality by the prison guards. Inhumane conditions in the segregation and isolation units, lack of sufficient heat and warm clothing, and denial of an opportunity to receive visitors or to exercise are alleged to constitute cruel and unusual punishment. Further, plaintiffs claim they have been discriminated against on the basis of race in the granting and denial of certain privileges. And, lastly, plaintiffs assert that their personal property has been confiscated without cause and without compensation. The Court has carefully scrutinized the testimony in this case, giving due weight to all the evidence, and concludes that, while plaintiffs have failed to prove all of their charges, they have shown substantial violations of rights guaranteed by the Constitution.

At the outset, the Court believes it important to place the present litigation in proper perspective. In October 1972, this Court entered its opinion in Newman v. State of Alabama, 349 F.Supp. 278, holding that prisoners within the Alabama Prison System were being deprived of proper and adequate medical treatment to which they are constitutionally entitled. Subsequently, there has been a large number of prisoner suits filed in this Court, including the present cases. The evidence presented in this case reflects a basic misunderstanding of the Newman order by both prison officials, including the custodial force, and inmates within the prison system. Most of the named plaintiffs in this suit are troublemakers, knowledgeable in manipulating and maneuvering others to their advantage. They are experienced in filing charges and in litigating against prison officials. They, and other inmates, have adopted the position that this Court stands ready to intervene in the administration of the prison system whenever they complain, regardless of the charge. The named plaintiffs and others continually attempt to coerce prison employees by threatening to file suit in this Court.

At the same time, the Newman order has engendered a high degree of resentment on the part of prison officials, especially custodial officers, who see the order as an improper interference with their duties and responsibilities in administering the prison system.

This Court wishes to disabuse all parties concerned of the notion that this Court will unduly interfere with the operation of the Alabama prison system. As the Fifth Circuit has succinctly stated, "Courts simply are not equipped to police the prisons." Novak v. Beto, 453 F.2d 661 (1971). "Federal courts will not interfere in the administration of prisons absent an abuse of the wide discretion allowed prison officials in maintaining order and discipline . . . ." Royal v. Clark, 447 F.2d 501-502 (5th Cir. 1971). While federal courts do not sit to supervise prisons, they do have a duty to enforce the constitutional rights of all persons, including prisoners. Cruz v. Beto, 405 U.S. 319, 321, 92 S.Ct. 1079, 31 L.Ed.2d 263 (1972). Prison officials must realize that prisoners do not lose all their constitutional rights, and that they are entitled to petition the courts to redress their grievances. See, e. g., Jackson v. Godwin, 400 F.2d 529 (5th Cir. 1968); Washington v. Lee, 263 F.Supp. 327, 331 (M.D.Ala.1966), aff'd per curiam, 390 U.S. 333, 88 S.Ct. 994, 19 L.Ed.2d 1212 (1968). This Court will accept and discharge its responsibility of deciding the cases brought before it and will intervene in the administration of the prison system only where it is necessary to preserve constitutional rights.

The present claims had their origin in a disturbance at the Atmore Prison Farm, Atmore, Alabama, a facility of the Alabama Prison System. On October 10 and 11, 1972, a work stoppage and sitdown demonstration were staged at Atmore, and a list of grievances was presented to prison officials there. On October 12, twenty-five prisoners believed to be the leaders of the disturbance were transferred to Mt. Meigs where they were placed in administrative segregation in Cell Block "A". Among the twenty-five prisoners were four of the named plaintiffs in Civil Action No. 3828-N. The named plaintiff in Civil Action No. 3900-N was later transferred from the Alexander City Road Camp to administrative segregation at Mt. Meigs. Although in each case these were transfers from the relative freedom of confinement in general population to the restricted confinement of administrative segregation, none of the named plaintiffs was given notice of any charges against him or provided with a hearing before the disciplinary board. Subsequent to the filing of the complaint in No. 3828-N, and some two months after transfer, a number of the Atmore transferees were charged variously with participating in and leading the Atmore strike. They were given a hearing, and all were found guilty, for which each lost six months good time. The named plaintiff in No. 3900-N was never given a hearing in connection with his transfer to administrative segregation. At the time of trial, only a few of the Atmore transferees still remained in administrative segregation. The authorities give as a reason for this confinement, the continued refusal of the prisoners to work.

The evidence in this case reflects that at least four different degrees of confinement exist within the prison system to which different regulations apply. General population is the least restrictive of these, followed by administrative segregation and, in turn, punitive isolation. Quarantine is a temporary status given to prisoners who have just entered a prison and have not yet been classified. Inmates in administrative segregation are confined to their cells twenty-four hours a day, with the exception of two ten-minute shower periods and a one-hour exercise period each week. They are not permitted to visit the prison library or to attend religious services, since security considerations prevent them from leaving their cells and attending group meetings. According to prison regulations, however, they may receive legal and religious materials upon request and are supplied with writ paper twice each week. They are allowed visitors once every two weeks, the same as inmates in the general population, except that visits are limited to weekdays. Inmates in administrative segregation are provided with bed linen and are allowed two changes of clothing each week. They may keep in their cells a radio, watch and rings; they are allowed to receive newspapers and magazines; and they may purchase personal items from the prison store twice each day. They are provided with a spending allowance of 75¢ every three weeks. The cells in "A" block are two-man cells and each contains a wash basin and a toilet. Three meals a day are delivered to the cells. Prisoners in administrative segregation status may sometimes be confined in a different part of the prison in cells otherwise used for punitive isolation. Physical conditions there are less pleasant. There is no wash basin — only a cold water spigot. The toilet, known as a chinese toilet, consists of a hole in the floor, and can be flushed only by the guard. Lighting is poor, and there are no lockers or stands on which to place personal belongings. Although the restriction on privileges for inmates confined in these cells is presumably the same as others in administrative segregation in "A" block, the inmates refer to these cells as "a proxy doghouse", or the equivalent of punitive isolation. Inmates confined in "A" block who violate rules or disobey orders are sometimes removed to the cells in the punitive isolation unit.

Inmates may be confined to punitive isolation for as long as 21 consecutive days. They are isolated in cells previously described where metal doors can be closed over the bars to completely...