Texas Appeals Order Requiring Prison Air Conditioning, Saying It Puts Operations at Risk
The state says the order would disrupt prison operations and cost $1.5 billion as it fights a ruling on extreme heat conditions.
- The Texas Department of Criminal Justice has appealed a federal order requiring air conditioning in all 104 facilities by December 31, 2029, requesting that District Judge Robert Pitman stay his ruling while the Fifth Circuit hears the case.
- On September 22, Pitman ruled that uncooled prisons violate the Eighth Amendment's prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment, citing evidence of severe inmate suffering and at least nine heat-related deaths between 2023 and 2025.
- According to Lumpkin, TDCJ's leader, a $287 million loss could force the agency to cut more than 1,300 employees, including correctional officers, while the agency argues the court-mandated timeline disrupts funding for healthcare and contraband prevention.
- Attorney Erica Grossman criticized the state's spending on legal battles instead of installing air conditioning, calling the project "entirely achievable," while former inmate Jennifer Toon described inmates sitting in wet clothes before fans to survive extreme heat.
- Democratic state Rep. Venton Jones of Dallas says funding this $1.5 billion project will be a priority in the 2027 legislative session, though advocates continue pressing for immediate action to improve prison conditions.
20 Articles
20 Articles
Texas appeals order requiring prison air conditioning, saying it puts operations at ris
Lawyers for Texas have appealed a federal judge’s order requiring all state lockups to be climate controlled before 2030 to the conservative 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, continuing a yearslong legal fight over air conditioning in the country’s largest…
Texas Appeals Order Requiring Air Conditioning in All State Prisons
Austin, TX — Texas is appealing a federal court order requiring the state to provide air conditioning in all of its prisons by the end of 2029, continuing a years-long legal battle over extreme heat behind bars. U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman ruled in September that forcing incarcerated people to endure dangerously high indoor temperatures violates constitutional protections against cruel and unusual punishment. He cited evidence of ongoing i…
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