
Jensen v. Shinn
What's at Stake
UPDATE: U.S. District Judge Roslyn O. Silver found on June 30, 2022, that the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation, and Reentry (ADCRR) systematically violates the constitutional rights of persons incarcerated in the state’s prisons by failing to provide them minimally adequate medical and mental health care, and by subjecting them to harsh and deprived conditions in solitary confinement units.
Summary
“Judge Silver’s ruling is a victory for the Constitution and the rule of law, and a vindication for the many thousands who have endured the appalling conditions in Arizona prisons,” said David Fathi, director of the ACLU National Prison Project. “We are heartened by this landmark decision, and expect state officials to comply with it immediately.”
“People in prison have a right to basic and adequate health care under the Eighth Amendment, and a prison sentence should never become a death sentence for people with treatable medical and mental health conditions,” said Rita Lomio, attorney at the Prison Law Office. “The court’s order affirms this bedrock constitutional principle.”
In the ruling, Judge Silver found that the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation, and Reentry (“ADCRR”) has “failed to provide, and continues to refuse to provide, a constitutionally adequate medical care and mental health care system for all prisoners,” and that the prisons’ “health care system is plainly grossly inadequate. Defendants have been aware of their failures for years and Defendants have refused to take necessary actions to remedy the failures.”
“The indefinite use of solitary confinement, especially for vulnerable populations like children or people with mental illness, violates the U.S. Constitution and all norms of basic human rights,” said Maya Abela, deputy legal director at the Arizona Center for Disability Law. “At trial, Arizona prison officials and staff admitted to chronic understaffing and routine falsification of data. Evidence showed people in these units often went days without receiving food or being allowed out of their cells for even a shower.”
Judge Silver also found that Arizona’s overuse of solitary confinement causes grave harm to the adults and children in state prisons who endure it. Specifically, she found that ADCRR keeps “thousands of prisoners in restrictive housing units where they are not provided adequate nutrition, nor are they provided meaningful out-of-cell time for exercise or social interaction. Defendants’ treatment of prisoners in restrictive housing units results in the deprivation of basic human needs. For years, Defendants have known of the deficiencies, highlighted by Court intervention and direction, and refused to take meaningful remedial actions.”
“For too long, Arizona state officials have purposefully looked the other way and provided no meaningful oversight of the horrific healthcare in Arizona prisons. I hope today starts to change that,” said Daniel Barr, a partner in the Phoenix office of Perkins Coie LLP. “I thank the three judges who have handled this case over the past 10 years — Judge Silver and Judges David Duncan and Neil Wake — and for all they have done to make this day possible.”
Judge Silver’s ruling came after a 15-day trial held in November and December 2021, where the evidence showed that incarcerated people suffered excruciating pain, permanent injuries, and preventable deaths due to the state’s failure to provide health care. The evidence presented at trial includes expert testimony regarding unconstitutional medical care, mental health care, the psychological effects of and conditions in isolation units, and health care staffing.
The class action lawsuit, formerly known as Parsons v. Ryan, was originally filed in 2012 against ADCRR, on behalf of all persons incarcerated in the state’s ten prisons. That case resulted in a 2014 court-approved settlement that was meant to protect the rights and health of incarcerated persons. The federal judges overseeing the implementation of the reforms issued numerous enforcement orders and twice found state prison officials in contempt, fining the state more than $2.5 million for their for-profit health care contractors’ failure to provide basic health care to prisoners. In July 2021, Judge Silver set aside the settlement agreement due to ADCRR’s “pervasive material breaches” of the agreement, and set the case for trial.
Legal Documents
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01/10/2023
Jensen v. Shinn - Remedial Order/Planned Injunction
Date Filed: 01/10/2023
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07/01/2022
Jensen v. Shinn - Plaintiffs’ Response to Defendants’ Proposed Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law
Date Filed: 07/01/2022
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07/01/2022
Jensen v. Shinn - Proposed Permanent Injunction
Date Filed: 07/01/2022
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07/01/2022
Jensen v. Shinn - Plaintiffs’ Proposed Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law
Date Filed: 07/01/2022
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07/01/2022
Jensen v. Shinn - Findings of Fact Post-Trial
Date Filed: 07/01/2022
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02/25/2021
Parsons v. Ryan - Contempt Order
Date Filed: 02/25/2021
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10/14/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Stipulation
Date Filed: 10/14/2014
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10/14/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Index of Exhibits to Stipulation
Date Filed: 10/14/2014
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09/04/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Supplemental Expert Report of Craig Haney, Ph.D., J.D.
Date Filed: 09/04/2014
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09/04/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Supplemental Expert Report of Eldon Vail
Date Filed: 09/04/2014
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08/29/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Second Supplemental Expert Report of Jay D. Shulman, DMD, MA, MSPH
Date Filed: 08/29/2014
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08/29/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Third Supplemental Expert Report of Pablo Stewart, M.D.
Date Filed: 08/29/2014
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08/29/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Third Supplemental Expert Report of Pablo Stewart, M.D. Appendix
Date Filed: 08/29/2014
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08/08/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Order Denying Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment
Date Filed: 08/08/2014
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06/05/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Opinion
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04/02/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Confidential Supplemental Report of Todd Randall Wilcox, M.D., M.B.A., C.C.H.P.-A
Date Filed: 04/02/2014
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02/24/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Confidential Supplemental Report of Robert L. Cohen, M.D.
Date Filed: 02/24/2014
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02/24/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Confidential Supplemental Expert Report of Jay D. Shulman, DMD, MA, MSPH
Date Filed: 02/24/2014
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02/24/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Second Supplemental Expert Report of Pablo Stewart, M.D.
Date Filed: 02/24/2014
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02/24/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Supplemental Report of Eldon Vail
Date Filed: 02/24/2014
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02/24/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Second Supplemental Expert Report of Brie Williams, M.D., M.S.
Date Filed: 02/24/2014
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01/31/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Confidential Rebuttal Report of Robert L. Cohen, M.D.
Date Filed: 01/31/2014
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01/31/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Rebuttal Report of Craig Hany, Ph.D., J.D.
Date Filed: 01/31/2014
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01/31/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Confidential Rebuttal Expert Report of Jay D. Shulman, DMD, MA, MSPH
Date Filed: 01/31/2014
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01/31/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Rebuttal Expert Report of Pablo Stewart, M.D. Exhibits
Date Filed: 01/31/2014
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01/31/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Rebuttal Expert Report of Pablo Stewart, M.D.
Date Filed: 01/31/2014
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01/31/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Confidential Rebuttal Report of Todd Randall Wilcox, M.D., M.B.A., C.C.H.P.-A Appendix A
Date Filed: 01/31/2014
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01/31/2014
Parsons v. Ryan - Rebuttal Expert Report of Brie Williams, M.D., M.S.
Date Filed: 01/31/2014
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12/09/2013
Parsons v. Ryan - Supplemental Expert Report of Pablo Stewart, M.D.
Date Filed: 12/09/2013
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12/09/2013
Parsons v. Ryan - Supplemental Expert Report of Brie Williams, M.D., M.S.
Date Filed: 12/09/2013
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11/08/2013
Parsons v. Ryan - Confidential Report of Robert L. Cohen, M.D.
Date Filed: 11/08/2013
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11/08/2013
Parsons v. Ryan - Confidential Expert Report of Jay D. Shulman, DMD, MA, MSPH
Date Filed: 11/08/2013
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11/08/2013
Parsons v. Ryan - Expert Report of Pablo Stewart, M.D. Exhibits
Date Filed: 11/08/2013
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11/08/2013
Parsons v. Ryan - Expert Report of Eldon Vail
Date Filed: 11/08/2013
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11/08/2013
Parsons v. Ryan - Confidential Report of Todd Randall Wilcox, M.D., M.B.A, C.C.H.P.-A Appendices
Date Filed: 11/08/2013
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11/08/2013
Parsons v. Ryan - Expert Report of Brie Williams, M.D., M.S.
Date Filed: 11/08/2013
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11/07/2013
Parsons v. Ryan - Expert Report of Craig Haney, Ph.D., J.D.
Date Filed: 11/07/2013
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01/31/2013
Parsons v. Ryan - Rebuttal Declaration of Eldon Vail Attachments
Date Filed: 01/31/2013
Press Releases
Federal Court Finds Conditions in Arizona State Prisons Unconstitutional
Judge Holds Arizona Department of Corrections in Contempt for the Second Time in Three Years
Federal Judge Holds Arizona Prison Officials in Contempt and Imposes $1.5 Million in Fines for Failing to Provide Adequate Health Care to Prisoners
Arizona Department of Corrections Facing Fines, Contempt of Court for Failure to Comply with Healthcare Settlement
Court Approves Major Settlement Improving Health Care in Arizona Prisons
Arizona Agrees to Major Improvements in Prison Health Care, Crucial Limits on Solitary Confinement in Landmark Settlement