Filed Date: Aug. 13, 1976
Closed Date: 1982
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Prisoners at the Wyoming State Penitentiary filed this class action lawsuit against the Wyoming Department of Corrections (WDOC) in the U.S. District Court for the District of Wyoming. Represented by the ACLU, the plaintiffs alleged that WDOC had violated their due process rights by imprisoning them in poor conditions. Specifically, the plaintiffs alleged that WDOC’s facilities were overcrowded, unsanitary, and unsafe; that WDOC provided inadequate medical care; and that WDOC staff behaved unconstitutionally. Little information about this case is available, but the Clearinghouse has obtained several orders (see “Case Docs”), and the case has been referenced in some publications (see “Resources”).
On April 5, 1977, the court (Judge Clarence Brimmer) approved a settlement agreement between the parties. On April 14, 1977, the court (Judge Brimmer) dismissed the case with prejudice.
Several years after the case was dismissed, the Wyoming Department of Corrections proposed new rules and regulations for the Wyoming State Penitentiary Rulebook which were not in compliance with the settlement agreement. The plaintiffs asked the court to hold the defendants in contempt of the agreement, and the parties negotiated amendments to the proposed rules. On November 14, 1980, the U.S. District Court for the District of Wyoming (Judge Brimmer) ordered that an amended copy of the proposed rules was in compliance with the settlement agreement and should be entered into the rulebook.
On January 25, 1982, the U.S. District Court for the District of Wyoming (Judge Brimmer) ordered that the complaint be fully and finally dismissed, finding that all terms and conditions of the settlement agreement had been fully performed by all parties concerned.
Summary Authors
Kristen Sagar (4/12/2006)
Timothy Leake (1/17/2020)
Brimmer, Clarence Addison Jr. (Wyoming)
Livingston, Michael K (Hawaii)
Brimmer, Clarence Addison Jr. (Wyoming)
Last updated Jan. 25, 2024, 3:02 a.m.
Docket sheet not available via the Clearinghouse.State / Territory: Wyoming
Case Type(s):
Key Dates
Filing Date: Aug. 13, 1976
Closing Date: 1982
Case Ongoing: No
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
Persons who were incarcerated at the Wyoming State Penitentiary during the time period beginning on August 13, 1976 and ending on ending on the date of the order of dismissal
Plaintiff Type(s):
Attorney Organizations:
Public Interest Lawyer: Yes
Filed Pro Se: Unknown
Class Action Sought: Yes
Class Action Outcome: Granted
Defendants
Wyoming Department of Corrections (Laramie), State
Defendant Type(s):
Case Details
Constitutional Clause(s):
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Plaintiff
Nature of Relief:
Injunction / Injunctive-like Settlement
Source of Relief:
Form of Settlement:
Court Approved Settlement or Consent Decree
Order Duration: 1977 - 1982
Issues
General:
Sanitation / living conditions
Medical/Mental Health:
Type of Facility: