Gates v. Collier

rights. This case was also the first broad-scale intervention by a court in the supervision of prison practices.

In Gates v. Collier, the Court of Appeals found certain forms of corporal punishment violate the Eighth Amendment, including “handcuffing inmates to the fence and to cells for long periods of time, ... and forcing inmates to stand, sit or lie on crates, stumps, or otherwise maintain awkward positions for prolonged periods.” [cite web
year=2002
month=Fall
url=http://www.scoc.state.ny.us/pdfdocs/clr02-3.pdf
title=Correction Law Report
publisher=New York State Commission of Correction
accessdate=2007-11-29 ]

Case

After years of civil rights protests over the conditions at Parchman, including efforts by the Freedom Riders, civil rights lawyer Roy Haber began to systematically collect evidence of the abuse. [cite web
author=Janine Robben
year=2007
month=
url=http://www.osbar.org/publications/bulletin/07jan/profiles.html
title=Lessons from Parchman Farm
work=Oregon State Bar Bulletin
publisher=Oregon State Bar
accessdate=2007-11-29 ] Represented by Haber, four Parchman inmates brought suit against the prison superintendent in federal district court alleging violation of their civil rights under the United States Constitution by inflicting cruel and unusual punishment.cite web
url=http://www.dsl.psu.edu/civilrights/chapter1.html
title=ACLU Parchman Prison
publisher=
accessdate=2006-08-29]

In 1972 federal judge William C. Keady found in favor of the inmates, writing that Parchman Farm violated modern standards of decency. He ordered an immediate end to all unconstitutional conditions and practices. [cite web
author=Ted Gioia
year=
month=
url=http://books.google.com/books?id=bwGMXGbKKIwC&pg=PA201&lpg=PA201&dq=%22judge+william+c+keady%22&source=web&ots=E6rKXXVknS&sig=-zqO9sWzXzIkVp4DDuyam1vdzyI
title=Work Songs
publisher=Oxford University Press
pages = p. 201
accessdate=2007-12-08] Racial segregation of inmates was abolished, and the Trusty System, which allow certain inmates to have power and control over others, was also abolished.cite web
url=http://www.h-net.org/~law/reviews/oshinskyd.htm
title=Parchman Farm and the Ordeal of Jim Crow Justice
publisher=
accessdate=2006-08-28]

Subsequently other states utilizing the Trusty System, such as Arkansas, Alabama, Louisiana and Texas were also forced to abolish it under the "Gates v. Collier" rulings.

ee also

*Trusty system
*Louisiana State Penitentiary
*Cummins Unit - Arkansas
*"Pervear v. Massachusetts"
*"Holt v. Sarver"

References

External links

* [http://www.dsl.psu.edu/civilrights/chapter1.html ACLU Parchman Farm]
* [http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/scripts/getcase.pl?court=US&vol=000&invol=01-309 FindLaw Hope v. Pelzer et al.]
* [http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/foia/tx5.txt United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth District]
* [http://query.nytimes.com/mem/archive-free/pdf?_r=1&res=9B07E0DC1E3EE033A25757C0A9609C946096D6CF&oref=slogin Penitentiary Farm Pays and Makes Money]
* [http://supct.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/01-309.ZS.html Hope v. Pelzer]