Liberty, et al vs Rhode Island Department of Corrections, et al, RI Federal District Court Case 1:19-cv-00573

On October 25, 2019, Disability Rights Rhode Island, in conjunction with the National Prison Project of the ACLU and the law firm of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP as cooperating counsel for ACLUof Rhode Island, filed a federal lawsuit against the Rhode Island Department of Corrections (RIDOC) alleging violations of the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments and Section 504 of the Americans with Disabilities Act for RIDOC’s  placement of prisoners with serious mental illness in solitary confinement, punishment of such prisoners for disability-related behavior, and failure to provide equal access to prison programs and services.  The complaint, brought on behalf of a class of individual prisoners and detainees with serious mental illness, six named plaintiffs and Disability Rights Rhode Island, is asking the court for declaratory and injunctive relief  to end the harsh conditions of solitary confinement for prisoners  and detainees with serious mental illness and to ensure that they have equal access to programs and services within the state’s prison facilities.