Filed Date: July 27, 1984
Closed Date: 1997
Clearinghouse coding complete
On July 27, 1984, inmates at the Missouri Eastern Correctional Center filed a class action lawsuit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against the Missouri Department of Corrections in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri. The plaintiffs alleged that their constitutional rights had been violated by overcrowding and lack of medical care.
On June 13, 1986, the parties entered into a consent decree, which stated that the corrections officials were to set aside sixteen single-occupancy cells within the prison's general population housing, and that they were also to provide for a nurse to be on duty at all times.
In 1990, the plaintiffs asked the court to enforce the consent decree, alleging that the defendants had not "continuously set aside sixteen single cells." The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri (Judge Stephen Limbaugh) held that the defendants had shown sufficiently changed circumstances to allow them to modify the consent decree. The plaintiffs appealed.
On August 3, 1992, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit (Judge Morris Arnold, Judge Gerald Heaney, and Judge Frank Magill) issued a per curiam decision affirming the district court's ruling. Green v. Moore, 1992 WL 181425 (8th Cir.(Mo.) Aug. 3, 1992).
On May 30, 1997, the defendants asked the court to terminate the consent decree and close the case pursuant to the Prison Litigation Reform Act. On July 3, 1997, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri (Judge Limbaugh) granted the defendants' request to terminate the consent decree and close the case. The plaintiffs appealed.
On June 25, 1998, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit (Judge Theodore McMillian, Judge James Loken, and Judge Diana Murphy) denied the appeal. Green v. Caspari, 1998 WL 390406 (8th Cir.(Mo.) June 25, 1998).
Summary Authors
Kristen Sagar (4/4/2006)
For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72257108/parties/ralph-green-v-dick-d-moore/
Arnold, Richard Sheppard (Arkansas)
Heaney, Gerald William (Minnesota)
Limbaugh, Stephen Nathaniel (Missouri)
Loken, James B. (Minnesota)
Gardner, Gary L. (Missouri)
See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/72257108/ralph-green-v-dick-d-moore/
Last updated June 4, 2026, 6:45 a.m.
State / Territory:
Case Type(s):
Key Dates
Filing Date: July 27, 1984
Closing Date: 1997
Case Ongoing: No
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
inmates at the Missouri Eastern Correctional Center
Public Interest Lawyer: Unknown
Filed Pro Se: Unknown
Class Action Sought: Yes
Class Action Outcome: Granted
Defendants
State
Missouri Department of Corrections
Facility Type(s):
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Constitutional Clause(s):
Other Dockets:
Eastern District of Missouri 4:84-cv-01743
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit 91-03679
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit 91-03681
U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit 98-01371
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Plaintiff OR Mixed
Relief Granted:
Injunction / Injunctive-like Settlement
Source of Relief:
Form of Settlement:
Court Approved Settlement or Consent Decree
Order Duration: 1986 - 1997
Issues
Jails, Prisons, Detention Centers, and Other Institutions:
Medical/Mental Health Care:
Case Summary of Green v. Caspari, Civil Rights Litig. Clearinghouse, https://clearinghouse.net/case/792/ (last updated 4/4/2006).