Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Conditions

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Court Case
Sep 2022
An illustration featuring a historic photo incarcerated people at Angola next to a modern image of incarcerated people at Angola. The outline of Louisiana is superimposed.

Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Conditions

Alex A. v. Edwards

The ƵNational Prison Project and partner civil rights attorneys filed a federal class-action lawsuit to prevent the transfer of children in the custody of Louisiana's Office of Juvenile Justice to the Louisiana State Penitentiary, commonly known as Angola Prison.
Alex A. V. Edwards. Explore Case.
Texas
Jul 2021
Sanchez et al v. Dallas County Sheriff et al

Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Conditions

Criminal Law Reform

Sanchez et al v. Dallas County Sheriff et al

Decarceration has always been an emergency, a life and death proposition, but COVID-19 makes this effort intensely urgent. The Ƶhas been working with our partners to litigate for the rights of those who are incarcerated and cannot protect themselves because of the policies of the institutions in which they are jailed.
Sanchez Et Al V. Dallas County Sheriff Et Al. Explore Case.
Mississippi
Mar 2017
Dockery v. Hall

Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Conditions

Prisoners' Rights

Dockery v. Hall

The ACLU, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), the Law Offices of Elizabeth Alexander, and the law firm of Covington & Burling LLP, filed a petition for class certification and expert reports for a federal lawsuit on behalf of prisoners at the East Mississippi Correctional Facility (EMCF). The lawsuit, which was filed in May 2013, describes the for-profit prison as hyper-violent, grotesquely filthy and dangerous. EMCF is operated in a perpetual state of crisis where prisoners are at grave risk of death and loss of limbs. The facility, located in Meridian, Mississippi, is supposed to provide intensive treatment to the state's prisoners with serious psychiatric disabilities, many of whom are locked down in long-term solitary confinement.
Dockery V. Hall. Explore Case.

All Cases

14 Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Conditions Cases

Vail v. Dunleavy
Alaska
Jan 2026

Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Conditions

Vail v. Dunleavy

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Vail V. Dunleavy. Explore Case.
Alaska
Jan 2026
Vail v. Dunleavy

Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Conditions

Vail v. Dunleavy

Vail V. Dunleavy. Explore Case.
Rosas v. Luna
California
May 2023

Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Conditions

Smart Justice

Rosas v. Luna

Rosas v. Luna is a class action lawsuit brought by the Ƶof Southern California (ƵSoCal), the ACLU’s National Prison Project (NPP), and the law firm of Paul Hastings LLP in 2012 against the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (LASD) over its routine, excessive, and unnecessary use of force against incarcerated people in the Los Angeles Jail system.
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Rosas V. Luna. Explore Case.
California
May 2023
Rosas v. Luna

Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Conditions

Smart Justice

Rosas v. Luna

Rosas v. Luna is a class action lawsuit brought by the Ƶof Southern California (ƵSoCal), the ACLU’s National Prison Project (NPP), and the law firm of Paul Hastings LLP in 2012 against the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (LASD) over its routine, excessive, and unnecessary use of force against incarcerated people in the Los Angeles Jail system.
Rosas V. Luna. Explore Case.
An aerial view of Pelican Bay Prison in Northern California. A large concrete lot with mutliple campuses and scorched green recreational areas is surrounded by a sea of green trees.
California
Apr 2023

Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Conditions

Prisoners' Rights

Ashker v. Governor of California

Ashker is a multi-year legal and advocacy struggle led by directly-impacted people to reform California’s use of solitary confinement and end its systemic reliance on fabricated confidential information to discipline people in prison.
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Ashker V. Governor Of California. Explore Case.
California
Apr 2023
An aerial view of Pelican Bay Prison in Northern California. A large concrete lot with mutliple campuses and scorched green recreational areas is surrounded by a sea of green trees.

Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Conditions

Prisoners' Rights

Ashker v. Governor of California

Ashker is a multi-year legal and advocacy struggle led by directly-impacted people to reform California’s use of solitary confinement and end its systemic reliance on fabricated confidential information to discipline people in prison.
Ashker V. Governor Of California. Explore Case.
IRC Processing
California
Sep 2022

Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Conditions

Rutherford v. Luna

Conditions at the LA County Jail system have been the subject of court oversight since 1978.
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Rutherford V. Luna. Explore Case.
California
Sep 2022
IRC Processing

Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Conditions

Rutherford v. Luna

Conditions at the LA County Jail system have been the subject of court oversight since 1978.
Rutherford V. Luna. Explore Case.
Baltimore City Detention Center. Photo: Blink Ofanaye (https://www.flickr.com/photos/blinkofanaye/17638298175/)
Maryland
Jul 2022

Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Conditions

Prisoners' Rights

Duvall v. Hogan

The settlement agreement was approved by the court on June 28, 2016.
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Duvall V. Hogan. Explore Case.
Maryland
Jul 2022
Baltimore City Detention Center. Photo: Blink Ofanaye (https://www.flickr.com/photos/blinkofanaye/17638298175/)

Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Conditions

Prisoners' Rights

Duvall v. Hogan

The settlement agreement was approved by the court on June 28, 2016.
Duvall V. Hogan. Explore Case.
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