{"id":1957,"date":"2022-09-23T11:22:00","date_gmt":"2022-09-23T15:22:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.merkley.senate.gov\/judge-weighing-legal-path-for-problems-at-oregons-federal-prison\/"},"modified":"2023-07-24T11:04:48","modified_gmt":"2023-07-24T15:04:48","slug":"judge-weighing-legal-path-for-problems-at-oregons-federal-prison","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.merkley.senate.gov\/es\/judge-weighing-legal-path-for-problems-at-oregons-federal-prison\/","title":{"rendered":"Judge weighing legal path for problems at Oregon\u2019s federal prison"},"content":{"rendered":"

Attorneys with the U.S. Department of Justice told a federal
\nmagistrate on Thursday that conditions inside the troubled Federal Bureau of
\nPrisons complex in Sheridan, Oregon, had improved.<\/p>\n

As recently as this summer, there was a hunger strike at the detention facility<\/a> en
\nprotest of the conditions and reports of out-of-state guards allegedly beating people<\/a> en
\ncustody who were participating in the litigation discussed at this week’s
\nhearing.<\/p>\n

The situation has gained national attention, including from
\nOregon U.S. Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley who wrote to the head of the Federal Bureau of Prisons last
\nmonth asking for an explanation<\/a> into the allegations of violence and
\nconcerns about mental health. Colette Peters, the newly assigned director of
\nthe nation’s prisons, ran Oregon\u2019s state prison system for a decade until she took the job in Washington, D.C. in August<\/a>. She visited
\nSheridan herself during a West Coast tour three weeks ago.<\/p>\n

At its root, this is a case about conditions inside the
\nprison. Oregon\u2019s Federal Public Defender Lisa Hay is representing more than 200
\npeople in habeas corpus petitions, which attorneys for the government argue
\npresents jurisdictional issues. More than two years on, they say the case
\nshould be litigated under the Prison Reform Litigation Act, which limits the
\nability of those in custody to challenge certain aspects of their imprisonment.<\/p>\n

For more than two years, people in custody at Sheridan have complained about the
\nprison\u2019s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic<\/a>, which they say led to lengthy
\nlockdowns that sometimes lasted entire weekends and an inability to get
\nadequate medical care. Since the pandemic began, at least seven people have
\ndied at the facility, though none from COVID-19.<\/p>\n

“The conditions are very different than when this case
\nbegan in 2020,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Alison Milne told the court.<\/p>\n

Milne said some programming at the prison has resumed, as
\nhas recreation, except for the 11 people who currently have COVID-19.<\/p>\n

At times, Thursday\u2019s hearing was tense, as attorneys for the
\nJustice Department, which is representing the Federal Bureau of Prisons, sought
\nto limit the scope of a case they said has dragged on for too long.<\/p>\n

Since taking on the case in 2020, Hay\u2019s office has
\ndocumented the experiences and allegations of people inside the federal prison
\nduring the pandemic and raised concerns about everything from cancer patients
\nnot receiving necessary treatment, to the quality of the food, and the overall
\nmental toll of being confined in a small cell.<\/p>\n

Throughout Thursday\u2019s hearing, Hay went on the offense,
\ndescribing the treatment at times as “Orwellian” and some allegedly
\nviolent guards as “thugs.” And she noted that Milne\u2019s comments about
\nconditions inside the prison were not delivered under oath, suggesting the
\nBureau of Prisons and those in its custody may not agree things are better.<\/p>\n

John Coit, another attorney for the government, said he
\nobjected to Hay\u2019s characterization.<\/p>\n

In late July, Hay\u2019s office filed an emergency motion after
\nreceiving reports of a Special Operations Response Team at the prison. A number
\nof the people who were allegedly targeted had previously filed lawsuits over
\nconditions inside the facility, according to Hay\u2019s filing. The accounts from
\ninside the prison detailed allegations of teams of prison staff wearing
\n“stab-vests” (a kind of body armor) and shirts that read
\n“Sheridan Disruption Unit,” engaging in unit-by-unit, cell-by-cell violence
\nduring the last two weeks in July.<\/p>\n

Last month, U.S. Magistrate Judge Stacie Beckerman declined
\nHay\u2019s request to appoint a special master to investigate the allegations.
\nDuring Thursday\u2019s hearing, Beckerman allowed the attorneys to revisit the
\nissue.<\/p>\n

“The government has never denied these allegations in
\nthis courtroom,” Hay said, noting they did send a letter to the Bureau of
\nPrisons requesting they preserve surveillance footage. Hay said her office
\nwould like to take depositions from staff.<\/p>\n

Coit said the allegations should not be part of the case and
\nreferred to any efforts to get more information as “invasive
\ndiscovery.”<\/p>\n

Hay also wants to file a “proposed finding of
\nfact,” summarizing much of the case. This summer, attorneys for the
\ngovernment did not oppose Hay\u2019s filing, she noted Thursday, but have since
\nchanged their minds. Shortly after Hay filed the summary this month as an
\nexhibit, the government asked Beckerman to seal it, which she did.<\/p>\n

The filing outlines at least seven deaths at the prison
\nsince March 2020, including one person who died by suicide.<\/p>\n

“The effect on mental and physical health of
\nincarcerated people has been devastating,” according to the filing, which
\nOPB obtained prior to the judge sealing it. “Repeated waves of coronavirus
\ninfections, and the long-term effects of isolation, indeterminate confinement,
\nand deprivation, have pushed residents at FCI Sheridan to the breaking point.
\nTheir pleas for help, reaching even the point of a hunger strike, have been met
\nlargely with indifference and at times violent retaliation.”<\/p>\n

The filing goes on to state that the prison violated the
\neighth amendment rights of convicted detainees and the due process rights of
\npre-trial detainees. It states that “in light of the pattern of
\nconstitutional violation over the last two years, no conditions of confinement
\nat Sheridan can comply with the Constitution.”<\/p>\n

Beckerman has prevented any further filings in the case. On
\nThursday, Beckerman took the case under advisement and said she would issue her
\nrulings about how, or even whether, the case moves forward.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Attorneys with the U.S. Department of Justice told a federal magistrate on Thursday that conditions inside the troubled Federal Bureau of Prisons complex in Sheridan, Oregon, had improved. As recently as this summer, there was a hunger strike at the detention facility in protest of the conditions and reports of out-of-state guards allegedly beating people in custody who were […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1957","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-in-the-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nJudge weighing legal path for problems at Oregon\u2019s federal prison - Merkley<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.merkley.senate.gov\/es\/judge-weighing-legal-path-for-problems-at-oregons-federal-prison\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"es_MX\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Judge weighing legal path for problems at Oregon\u2019s federal prison - Merkley\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Attorneys with the U.S. Department of Justice told a federal magistrate on Thursday that conditions inside the troubled Federal Bureau of Prisons complex in Sheridan, Oregon, had improved. 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