Prison staff in New York will be required to comply with a controversial law following an order from an Albany Supreme Court judge. The law was a sticking point in the statewide corrections officer strikes that debilitated operations at several prison facilities.Tuesday, Judge Michael Lynch ruled in a class action lawsuit against the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS), which alleges the agency’s rollback of the Humane Alternatives to Long-Term Solitary Confinement (HALT) Act is illegal.Lynch ruled in favor of the nonprofit Legal Aid Society, writing that DOCCS exploited part of HALT, which allows it to deal with emergencies. The 2022 law limits the use of solitary confinement. In March, the prison agency suspended enforcement of it as part of its negotiations with striking corrections officers, who said the law led to an increase in violence inside prisons. During the strikes, the New York State Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent Association (NYSCOPBA) asked Governor Kathy Hochul to suspend or restructure HALT to get people back to work. Former and current officers called on the governor to repeal the law altogether.In March, DOCCS, NYSCOPBA and thousands of striking officers agreed to a deal which included a 90-day pause on parts of HALT and the establishment of a committee which would present recommendations to the New York State Legislature about potential reforms. The suspension had some flexibility built into it. The deal, disseminated March 8 as a memo, allowed DOCCS Commissioner Daniel F. Martuscello III to assess “the operations, safety and security” of each prison facility and decide if re-implementing the HALT Act would help or hinder the prisons’ ability to function safely. HALT gives DOCCS discretion to declare an emergency, allowing for temporary suspension. The March 8 memo referenced an “ongoing emergency…within each facility due to the significant staffing deficit that existed prior to the illegal strike.”Before the strikes began, DOCCS employed approximately 13,500 corrections officers, which represented 70 percent of its full staffing model. More than 2,000 officers were terminated after they did not return to work in March, which put the post-strike total at 11,500, or 59 percent of the full staffing model.The class action lawsuit was filed on behalf of six plaintiffs, who are all incarcerated in state prisons. One of them, Kariem Tomlin, of Staten Island, is lodged at Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora. Court documents say he’s being held in solitary confinement — also known as ‘special housing’ —for more than 17 hours a day, which HALT prohibits. Another plaintiff, Taron Jackson, claims to be held in segregated confinement for more than 20 hours a day at Green Haven Correctional Facility in Stormville.The petition alleges DOCCS is imposing a “de facto suspension” on the solitary confinement limits set by HALT, going beyond what was defined in the March 8 memo, which makes mention of the mandate’s “programming elements”. The Albany Supreme Court rejected claims that the suspension of HALT is not linked to longer confinement periods, writing that the contention is “meritless,” but stated his order does not require DOCCS to “flip a switch and open the cell doors”. The Commissioner can still suspend HALT in facilities where he can prove there is an emergency situation, which the judge points out DOCCS already agreed to in the March 8 memo.Judge Lynch also states DOCCS does not have sufficient staff to implement HALT, giving the agency until July 11 to comply with his order.Earlier this week, a spokesperson from the prison agency told NBC5 they are reviewing the decision.NBC5 also reached out to NYSCOPBA. A spokesperson for the union said they had no knowledge of the court proceeding or decision.
Prison staff in New York will be required to comply with a controversial law following an order from an Albany Supreme Court judge. The law was a sticking point in the statewide corrections officer strikes that debilitated operations at several prison facilities.
Tuesday, Judge Michael Lynch ruled in a class action lawsuit against the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision (DOCCS), which alleges the agency’s rollback of the Humane Alternatives to Long-Term Solitary Confinement (HALT) Act is illegal.
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Lynch ruled in favor of the nonprofit Legal Aid Society, writing that DOCCS exploited part of HALT, which allows it to deal with emergencies.
The 2022 law limits the use of solitary confinement. In March, the prison agency suspended enforcement of it as part of its negotiations with striking corrections officers, who said the law led to an increase in violence inside prisons.
During the strikes, the New York State Correctional Officers and Police Benevolent Association (NYSCOPBA) asked Governor Kathy Hochul to suspend or restructure HALT to get people back to work. Former and current officers called on the governor to repeal the law altogether.
In March, DOCCS, NYSCOPBA and thousands of striking officers agreed to a deal which included a 90-day pause on parts of HALT and the establishment of a committee which would present recommendations to the New York State Legislature about potential reforms.
The suspension had some flexibility built into it. The deal, disseminated March 8 as a memo, allowed DOCCS Commissioner Daniel F. Martuscello III to assess “the operations, safety and security” of each prison facility and decide if re-implementing the HALT Act would help or hinder the prisons’ ability to function safely.
HALT gives DOCCS discretion to declare an emergency, allowing for temporary suspension. The March 8 memo referenced an “ongoing emergency…within each facility due to the significant staffing deficit that existed prior to the illegal strike.”
Before the strikes began, DOCCS employed approximately 13,500 corrections officers, which represented 70 percent of its full staffing model. More than 2,000 officers were terminated after they did not return to work in March, which put the post-strike total at 11,500, or 59 percent of the full staffing model.
The class action lawsuit was filed on behalf of six plaintiffs, who are all incarcerated in state prisons. One of them, Kariem Tomlin, of Staten Island, is lodged at Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora.
Court documents say he’s being held in solitary confinement — also known as ‘special housing’ —for more than 17 hours a day, which HALT prohibits. Another plaintiff, Taron Jackson, claims to be held in segregated confinement for more than 20 hours a day at Green Haven Correctional Facility in Stormville.
The petition alleges DOCCS is imposing a “de facto suspension” on the solitary confinement limits set by HALT, going beyond what was defined in the March 8 memo, which makes mention of the mandate’s “programming elements”.
The Albany Supreme Court rejected claims that the suspension of HALT is not linked to longer confinement periods, writing that the contention is “meritless,” but stated his order does not require DOCCS to “flip a switch and open the cell doors”.
The Commissioner can still suspend HALT in facilities where he can prove there is an emergency situation, which the judge points out DOCCS already agreed to in the March 8 memo.
Judge Lynch also states DOCCS does not have sufficient staff to implement HALT, giving the agency until July 11 to comply with his order.
Earlier this week, a spokesperson from the prison agency told NBC5 they are reviewing the decision.
NBC5 also reached out to NYSCOPBA. A spokesperson for the union said they had no knowledge of the court proceeding or decision.
