Court Settlement Bound Over Inmate Conditions In Santa Clara Co.

SAN JOSE, CA -- A San Francisco federal court judge approved the settlement Thursday involving Santa Clara County inmate conditions in response to a class action lawsuit filed by a prisoner advocacy group on behalf of citizens against the county.

The Prison Law Office alleged some of the county's jail conditions were "unconstitutional" in its complaint.

The court hearing wrapped up a three-year process pertaining to Cesar vs. County of Santa Clara, which came about to stop solitary confinements set for indefinite periods among other issues plaguing the county jail system.

The county reached the $1.6 million settlement five months ago and pledged to make changes under a "Remedial Plan" that address inmate concerns ranging from prisoner welfare to a more efficient intake process. Inmate gripes came to a head after the 2015 death of a mentally ill inmate, Michael Tyree. Three jail guards were convicted in 2017 of beating Tyree to death.

The Prison Law Office was somewhat pleased with the outcome it labeled as a technicality in court since both sides found common ground in extensive negotiations before the Thursday afternoon appearance.

The settlement ties the county to improving living conditions for people confined in jails, a reform process county administration and the Sheriff’s Office started addressing over three years ago. And the county plans to make more measures to ensure humane inmate conditions.

Prison Law Office Executive Director Donald Specter commended the county for its "leadership, transparency and dedication to finding solutions that addressed the deficiencies," listing the use of force along with solitary confinement as main issues. A recent realignment between state prisoners and county facilities has placed more pressure on the local government jail system.

"In any settlement, you don't get everything you want, but the county has been cooperative with a lot of good will," Specter told Patch after the hearing.

The county was also satisfied with the result, putting an end to a long, laborious legal process.

“For the last three years, the county has tackled necessary jail reforms in a collaborative, deliberative, and transparent fashion resulting in improved conditions for inmates and their families, the staff, and our community. With this settlement complete, the county can now finalize its work on the County’s larger efforts on jail reforms,” County Counsel James R. Williams said.

In turn, Sheriff Laurie Smith added that she has “appreciated the professionalism of the Prison Law Office and Cooley LLP and the opportunity to work cooperatively to find common ground in the parties’ shared goal of providing appropriate conditions for inmates in the county’s custody.”

The Prison Law Office and experts will monitor the county’s implementation efforts to ensure compliance.

Key points of the settlement agreement include:

• For all inmates, the county will make several modifications to the intake and booking process to better identify, monitor and address inmates’ medical, dental and mental health conditions as well as non-mobility and cognitive disabilities.
• For all inmates, the county will make several modifications to the intake and booking process to better identify, monitor, and address inmates’ medical, dental and mental health conditions as well as non-mobility and cognitive disabilities.
• For all inmates, the county will improve the delivery of medical, dental and mental health care while in custody through reduced wait times to be seen for health care concerns; revisions to the referral systems; and changes to the medication distribution and verification processes.
• For inmates with serious mental illnesses and cognitive disabilities, the county will make systemwide changes to the screening, classification, housing and management needs unique to these inmates.
• For inmates at risk of suicide, the county will make additional efforts at suicide prevention through revised triage and screening processes for evaluating inmates with suicidal behaviors, installation of suicide resistant cells and changes to the way the jail supervises inmates at risk of suicide.
• For inmates with dental needs, the county will improve wait times and expand services to inmates incarcerated for longer periods.
• For inmates with vision, hearing, and speech disabilities, the county will improve its identification and verification processes as well as its issuance, retention, and provision of assistive devices; accommodate these inmates in improved housing; provide for effective communication and programmatic access; and track accommodations provided to these inmates.
• For inmates who engage in violence, their contact with inmates and staff must be reduced for the safety and security of the institution. The county will use a new, innovative phased approach using expert consultations. This new approach will include specific admittance criteria and a high-level review for inmates who are retained for longer periods of time; notice to inmates regarding their placement; improved conditions on these units in the form of greater out-of-cell time and more meaningful out-of-cell opportunities; as well as an opportunity for inmates to demonstrate good behavior and return to a lesser restrictive setting.

• The Sheriff’s Office has developed a new use of force policy and implemented extensive training to correctional staff on the policy as well as de-escalation and conflict resolution training.

--Bay City News contributed to this report.