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Trial over AC in Texas Prisons Starts with Alleged Heat-Related Deaths
The trial will assess Texas's $1.3 billion plan to air condition prisons after heat caused at least 271 deaths from 2001 to 2019, averaging 14 deaths per year, plaintiffs say.
- On Monday, a bench trial began in the US District Court for the Western District of Texas to analyze the state's $1.3 billion plan to install air conditioning in all prisons by 2033.
- Plaintiffs allege heat-related deaths occurred in Texas prisons, while unlike county jails, the state has no temperature standards for facilities despite existing heat protocols.
- Officials estimate installing permanent cooling costs more than $1.1 billion with annual operating expenses near $20 million, while lawmakers provided $118 million in 2025 for installation.
- Attorneys for plaintiffs argued the state displays "deliberate indifference" to inmate safety, while defense attorneys countered that deaths may stem from other causes such as drug toxicity.
- District Judge Robert Pitman must decide whether to enforce a firm timeline, as advocates warn the prison system will not be fully air-conditioned for nearly 30 years under current pace.
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21 Articles
Associated Press News+4 Reposted by 4 other sources
Trial over air conditioning in Texas prisons starts with dispute over alleged heat-related deaths
There were allegedly five heat-related deaths over the last two summers in Texas prisons, the plaintiff’s attorneys presented on the first day of the federal trial over insufficient air conditioning in these facilities.
·United States
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Lawsuit Challenges Texas Prison Conditions Over Heat Death Claims
AUSTIN, Texas — A federal trial examining extreme heat conditions in Texas prisons began this week, focusing on whether a lack of air conditioning contributed to inmate deaths and violates constitutional standards. Attorneys for incarcerated plaintiffs argued that at least five deaths in 2024 and 2025 were linked to high temperatures inside facilities, with heat indexes reportedly reaching triple digits. A March 2025 ruling by U.S. District Judg…
·Greensboro, United States
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Coverage Details
Total News Sources21
Leaning Left5Leaning Right1Center8Last UpdatedBias Distribution57% Center
Bias Distribution
- 57% of the sources are Center
57% Center
L 36%
C 57%
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