Vigo County is facing claims that officials have been “deliberately indifferent” to the problems faced by jail inmates as a result of overcrowding at the facility.
Attorneys representing inmates recently filed a motion for summary judgement in a lawsuit that alleges overcrowded conditions.
In court documents filed in late June, the inmates claim that the conditions have resulted in a failure to provide “the minimal civilized measure of life’s necessities” and have been detrimental to inmates’ health and wellbeing.
The county has been facing allegations of overcrowding for more than a decade. The ACLU filed a lawsuit against the jail in 2002, after which the county agreed to keep its inmate population below 268. But a second lawsuit from 2013 claims the county didn’t uphold that agreement.
Now, attorneys in the third, most recent lawsuit claim that, while county officials have known about the overcrowded and potentially unhealthy conditions for years, they have not fixed the issue.
“Indeed, the County has stipulated that the conditions in the Jail fail to meet constitutional standards,” the document reads. “Yet, the County has done nothing. This is deliberate indifference.”
The suit claims that the unsafe conditions are a result of overcrowding, lack of staff, and the physical construction of the jail. It alleges inmates are not given proper recreational opportunities or safe living conditions.
County officials have emphasized the need for a new jail facility to accommodate the inmate population. After facing public backlash for a proposal that would have cost the county more than $60 million, county commissioners agreed to hire a firm to conduct an independent assessment of the county’s needs.
That study is not yet complete. But the court documents say the results so far have shown the need for a new facility that can house 462 beds.
The suit requests that county officials be required to meet with a judge to provide progress reports on the new jail, or any alternate plans to permanently solve the overcrowding, every 30 days. It also asks that they be required outline their plans to combat negative effects of overcrowding in the short term.
