Texas, Government caring for residents, Qualified Immunity

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0101silent
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Texas, Government caring for residents, Qualified Immunity

Post by 0101silent »

It was argued that a reasonable person, nor well trained Texas government workers, would think that there was any wrong doing.

I wonder if the Texan government feels sorry or accountable for any of recent hardships during the freezing weather, power outages, and lack of running water?

I chose this article of the many because it quotes the Supreme Court.
http://www.texaspubliccorruption.ru/8391-2/

For the conditions to be that dirty how many other people were put into those rooms?

"
PER CURIAM.
Petitioner Trent Taylor is an inmate in the custody of the
Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Taylor alleges that,
for six full days in September 2013, correctional officers
confined him in a pair of shockingly unsanitary cells.1 The
first cell was covered, nearly floor to ceiling, in “‘massive
amounts’ of feces”: all over the floor, the ceiling, the window, the walls, and even “‘packed inside the water faucet.’”
Taylor v. Stevens, 946 F. 3d 211, 218 (CA5 2019). Fearing
that his food and water would be contaminated, Taylor did
not eat or drink for nearly four days. Correctional officers
then moved Taylor to a second, frigidly cold cell, which was
equipped with only a clogged drain in the floor to dispose of
bodily wastes. Taylor held his bladder for over 24 hours,
but he eventually (and involuntarily) relieved himself,
causing the drain to overflow and raw sewage to spill across
the floor. Because the cell lacked a bunk, and because Taylor was confined without clothing, he was left to sleep naked
in sewage.
The Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit properly held
that such conditions of confinement violate the Eighth
Amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment.
"
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whiterussian1974
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Re: Texas, Government caring for residents, Qualified Immunity

Post by whiterussian1974 »

Being a former TDCJ-ID corrections Ofr, I can attest that these things DO sometimes happen.

The issue becomes one of accountability. I only skimmed through the SCOTUS Ruling. Was the Respondent RIOJAS a CO3 or Sgt, Lt, Cpt, Warden?

Typically it is the responsibility of the CO3 to report "unsuitable conditions" through the Chain of Command. The Lowest possible level being the 1st to be notified. And the way that Schedules work, they will probably go off duty prior to the Situation being addressed, and won't work that Cell Block for another 2 weeks.

CO3s are actually disciplined to the point of Termination for escalating the Notice about the Sgt, unless and until a higher Ofr "directly interacts" with the Co3. This means that the CO3 must remain "silent until spoken to" and not "go above" the Sgt, but rather assume that a report was forwarded to the Correct Official. (I was placed on Probation for informing the Cpt of a similar situation that my Sgts refused to address.)

Now the CO3 can "cover themselves" by filing a written report, but that assumes availability of paper, and enough time to write. (Both resources are purposely restricted to prevent "bad paper" from entering a file.)

The CO3's only real recourse is to "leak" to the Media. But that violates Federal Law, and many Administrative Codes. Assuming that the Media even cares about the story. The local press typically doesn't.
---
I didn't read the Response well enough to determine the Purpose of the Inmate's restriction nor housing assignment. So presumably he was in Segregation level 1-3. Having Clothing Restriction indicates some even more serious accusation.

If we had video inspection of each cell in that cellblock, it would NOT surprise me to learn that 15-40% of the cells had either backed-up drainage, or feces spread around the walls and floor. This is a Systemic Failure, not one that any individual CO3 is capable of addressing.
---
I'd love to decry such treatment even of Inmates, but I'd need more (confirmed) info prior to being able to give specifics. Needless to say, the System is rife with these types of occurrences, and no one really seems to care, except for those directly affected by them.

They could be easily rectified by an outside Civilian Agency that reports to IAD or the Attorney General's Office. But even County DAs wouldn't monitor these actions. Most would seek to empty outhouses into the Cellblocks, not remove the feces that is already there.
The Darkest Corners of Hell are reserved for those who remain Neutral!-Dante
The Death of One is a Tragedy, a million only a statistic.-Stalin
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0101silent
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Re: Texas, Government caring for residents, Qualified Immunity

Post by 0101silent »

CO3's disciplined? Why bother. They're reasonable people. Just have them report to those cells for guard duty for every shift until they resign or retire.
whiterussian1974 wrote: Mon Feb 22, 2021 6:16 pm If we had video inspection of each cell in that cellblock, it would NOT surprise me to learn that 15-40% of the cells had either backed-up drainage, or feces spread around the walls and floor. This is a Systemic Failure, not one that any individual CO3 is capable of addressing.
There is no reason for any government building to have a backed up drain or feces on the wall for more than a few hours.
whiterussian1974 wrote: Mon Feb 22, 2021 6:16 pm Needless to say, the System is rife with these types of occurrences, and no one really seems to care, except for those directly affected by them.
Now most of the state is getting the same treatment in this current weather power and water crisis. Will anything change?

I would normally say that no one deserves that sort of treatment. If there is criminal culpability for those responsible for leaving millions without water or power I know what prison they should be sent to.
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