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Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Ind. Decisions - "Feds end 35 years of county jail scrutiny"

Diana Penner reported yesterday in the Indianapolis Star:

A federal court judge has cleared the way for local officials to independently operate the Marion County Jail after more than three decades of federal oversight because of crowding.

U.S. District Judge Sarah Evans Barker on Friday ended the consent decree that had been in effect since 1972, and released the written order Monday.

The ruling follows a sometimes-rocky 35-year period that saw a jail expansion, court-ordered inmate releases, annexes to hold a growing number of inmates and the inception of a night court to more quickly process criminal suspects.

"(T)he Court ruled that the judgment has been fulfilled, that judicial supervision of this litigation is no longer necessary, that an order to terminate is fair, reasonable, and adequate, and the Consent Decree should be and is dissolved," Barker wrote. * * *

Ken Falk, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana, which filed the original lawsuit, did not oppose him.

The story includes a side-bar listing "the major milestones of the Marion County Jail and its overcrowding problems."

Posted by Marcia Oddi on June 13, 2007 01:17 PM
Posted to Ind Fed D.Ct. Decisions