A Systematic Review of State and Federal Court Rulings on Texas Prison Conditions

• In Event: Poster Session I

Abstract

Despite considerable change in inmate rights over the past several decades, researchers, practitioners, and policymakers know little about the current state of prisoner litigation. The purpose of this project to examine the conditions of confinement within Texas prisons that inmates allege violate their constitutional rights by examining state and federal court rulings decided between 2010 and 2015. We randomly sampled state and federal court rulings to identify themes and patterns that can inform policy and practice. The findings from our study may help the Texas Department of Criminal Justice identify factors that lead to prisoner litigation and will help researchers understand how prisoner litigation has changed over the course of five years.

Authors

• Jazmin Esmeralda Palacios, Sam Houston State University

• H. Daniel Butler, Sam Houston State University