Filed Date: March 21, 1978
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In 1980 inmates of the Hartford Community Correctional Center ("HCCC") filed separate lawsuits under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 in the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut against the Warden of the prison and the Commissioner of Corrections for overcrowding, inadequacies in health care, sanitation, food, heating, recreation, counseling services and safety. Plaintiffs were represented by various legal services organizations in Connecticut. The plaintiffs' actions were consolidated into one class action. The Court (Judge Jose A. Cabranes) found for the plaintiffs on the issue of overcrowding but in doing so, it held that the overcrowding was the root of most of the other complaints and refused to find additional specific violations. The Court ordered specific remedies to deal with the overcrowding and the ancillary issues related to it, and defendants appealed. Lareau v. Manson, 507 F.Supp. 1177 (D.CT. 1980).
On June 1, 1981, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed the Court's decision in the following ways: (1) the prison violated due process rights of pretrial detainees by confining them and other inmates in overcrowded conditions not reasonably related to a legitimate goal to justify forcing them to endure genuine privation and hardship over an extended period of time; and (2) subjecting sentenced inmates to combination of double-bunking and overcrowded dayrooms violated their Eighth Amendment rights when imposed for a period of time in excess of 30 days. The Appellate Court modified and remanded the Court's holding on a strict design capacity population cap and an absolute prohibition of any double bunking. The Court found these provisions unfeasible. It instructed that the more flexible and feasible alternative was to limit the maximum duration of the inmates' confinement in the double cells rather than prohibit double bunking altogether and it remanded the provision back for appropriate modification. Lareau v. Manson, 651 F.2d 96 (2nd Cir. 1981).
No further information is available.
Summary Authors
Rebecca Bloch (4/21/2006)
Cabranes, José Alberto (Connecticut)
Friendly, Henry Jacob (New York)
Blue, Jon C. (Connecticut)
Ajello, Carl R. (Connecticut)
Bezanson, Lee (Connecticut)
Cabranes, José Alberto (Connecticut)
Friendly, Henry Jacob (New York)
Kearse, Amalya Lyle (New York)
Mansfield, Walter Roe (New York)
Last updated March 27, 2024, 3:14 a.m.
Docket sheet not available via the Clearinghouse.State / Territory: Connecticut
Case Type(s):
Key Dates
Filing Date: March 21, 1978
Case Ongoing: No reason to think so
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
inmates of the Hartford Community Correctional Center
Public Interest Lawyer: Yes
Filed Pro Se: Unknown
Class Action Sought: Yes
Class Action Outcome: Granted
Defendants
Hartford Community Correctional Center (Hartford), State
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Constitutional Clause(s):
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Plaintiff
Nature of Relief:
Injunction / Injunctive-like Settlement
Source of Relief:
Order Duration: 1980 - None
Issues
General:
Food service / nutrition / hydration
Sanitation / living conditions
Staff (number, training, qualifications, wages)
Jails, Prisons, Detention Centers, and Other Institutions:
Medical/Mental Health:
Type of Facility: