Home : Prisoners' Rights : Mental Health Care

ACLU Lawsuit Against Michigan Department of Corrections Resumes Today (04/28/2008)
KALAMAZOO, MI - The American Civil Liberties Union is arguing today in a Michigan federal court that Michigan Department of Corrections officials must provide necessary mental health care services to newly-admitted and other prisoners.

ACLU Urges Court to Fine Virgin Islands Officials for Indefinitely Detaining Innocent Mentally Ill Inmates (11/30/2007)
ST. THOMAS, VI –The American Civil Liberties Union today is urging a federal judge to fine top government officials in the Virgin Islands for not complying with court orders to transfer inmates with mental illness to a psychiatric hospital. The inmates have been found not guilty by reason of insanity, and have been imprisoned for years without any criminal charges or access to appropriate mental health care.

ACLU of New Mexico Sues for Better Safety and Services in Juvenile Justice Facilities (11/19/2007)
ALBUQUERQUE – The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico sued the New Mexico Children Youth and Families Department (CYFD) today for failing to ensure safe living conditions and essential rehabilitation services for young people in state juvenile justice facilities. The lawsuit charges CYFD with breaching the terms of a contract it signed with the ACLU in February 2006 requiring the agency to establish minimally adequate mental health services and protect youth from physical assaults and threats of violence. CYFD entered into the 2006 agreement in order to avoid being sued for rights violations at that time, said the ACLU.

Civil Rights Groups Sue Doña Ana County Jail over Poor Mental Health Services (11/07/2007)
LAS CRUCES, NM—Civil rights groups sued the Dona Ana County Detention Center today for failure to provide adequate mental health services to inmates in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act and constitutional prohibitions on “cruel and unusual punishment.” The class action suit charges county officials with “deliberate indifference to [inmates’] serious mental health needs,” including failure to provide adequate mental health screening, monitoring, and care. On behalf of plaintiffs, Protection and Advocacy System, Inc. (P&A), the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of New Mexico, and private attorneys Michael Lilley of Las Cruces and Peter Cubra and Lisa Schatz-Vance of Albuquerque seek an effective program for mental health screening and treatment for all detainees and policy changes prohibiting the unnecessary incarceration of people with mental illness.

Solitary Confinement Called "Inappropriate" for Mentally Ill Prisoners in Indiana (01/30/2007)
INDIANAPOLIS-The American Civil Liberties Union National Prison Project and the ACLU of Indiana announced today that, as a result of a lawsuit filed by the ACLU, the Indiana Department of Correction has agreed to move all mentally ill prisoners out of the Secured Housing Unit (SHU), a "Supermax" unit where prisoners are forced to live in extreme isolation and sensory deprivation for months or even years.

Michigan Judge Orders an End to the Use of Restraints on Prisoners (11/13/2006)
KALAMAZOO, MI - Today Judge Richard Alan Enslen ordered that Michigan prison officials must make significant improvements to mental health care and cease the use of in-cell non-medical restraints for punishment, just one month after he heard arguments from the ACLU National Prison Project and local civil rights attorneys that mental health care in Michigan was a failure. The decision affects several prison facilities in Jackson, Michigan.

Indiana's "Supermax" Confinement Worsens Mental Illness in Prisoners, ACLU Charges (02/03/2005)
INDIANAPOLIS - The extreme isolation and sensory deprivation found in Indiana's Secured Housing Unit spurred four suicides and numerous self-mutilations by mentally ill prisoners, said the American Civil Liberties Union today in a lawsuit filed against state prison officials.

Appeals Court Affirms that Mississippi Death Row Conditions are Unconstitutional (06/30/2004)
NEW ORLEANS-In the most comprehensive decision regarding death row conditions in the last ten years, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit has affirmed a lower court's opinion that Mississippi's death row is unconstitutional and requires improvements, the American Civil Liberties Union and the law firm Holland & Knight announced today.

ACLU Raises Concerns Over Psychiatric Services After Suicide at Orleans Parish Prison (06/08/2004)
NEW ORLEANS- At a hearing tomorrow before U.S. Magistrate Judge Alma L. Chasez, the American Civil Liberties Union will argue for reconsideration of the court's dismissal of mental health care issues from its oversight at the Orleans Parish Prison, following the apparent suicide of a 34-year-old man placed in four-point restraints.

Citing Expert Reports on Inhumane Prison Conditions, ACLU Asks Court to Speed Review of MS Prison Case (09/06/2002)
JACKSON, MS--The American Civil Liberties Union today asked a federal court to speed review of a lawsuit over prison conditions at the Mississippi State Penitentiary in Parchman, citing reports by court-appointed experts detailing inhumane conditions that have directly contributed to psychiatric problems in the prison population.

ACLU of Arkansas Says Court Ruling Brings New Hope to Mentally Ill Jail Inmates Denied Treatment (05/07/2002)
LITTLE ROCK, AR--The American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas won a significant victory for the mentally ill today when a federal judge ruled that the state violated the rights of mentally ill inmates by allowing them to languish in jails and denying them court-ordered evaluations and treatment. 

After Eight Deaths in Colorado Jail, ACLU Files Lawsuit Over Treatment of Mentally Ill Prisoners (04/02/2002)
DENVER--Saying that the El Paso County Jail in Colorado Springs has failed to protect and provide adequate resources for prisoners with serious mental health needs, the American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado today filed a federal class action lawsuit against prison officials. 

Class-Action Lawsuit Challenges Failure of Illinois Officials to Provide Adequate Mental Health Treatment (02/27/2002)
CHICAGO--Claiming that the treatment needs of the emotionally disturbed are not being met, the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois today filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of four individuals currently being held in Joliet Correctional Center under the state's Sexually Violent Persons Commitment Act. 

Mentally Ill Inmates in Arkansas Gain Ground in Lawsuit Over Poor Treatment and Conditions (11/08/2001)
LITTLE ROCK, AR--Citing the vulnerability of the mentally ill in jail, a federal district judge today agreed that an American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas lawsuit against state health officials charged with failing to provide treatment should be certified as a class action. 

ACLU of Arkansas Sues Jail and Hospital Officials Over Lack of Treatment for Mentally Ill Inmates (07/16/2001)
LITTLE ROCK--In a federal class-action lawsuit filed today, the American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas today charged state mental health and law enforcement officials with failing to provide treatment for mentally ill people in jail awaiting trial or removal to a hospital.