This is a study of the post-judgment history of a recent, significant correctional law case. It is not an examination of the development of correctional law or modern corrections in general, but a narrowly focused e~amination of how the Holt v. Sarver litigation affected the Arkansas prison system, particularly the Cummins prison . 1he study details the process by which Holt v. Sarver was implemented, the factors which influenced that process, the roles of the various persons and institutions involved, the extent to which compliance was achieved, and the overall outcome of the litigation -its impact.
It will be observed that the judgments in this study are cautious and the conclusions tentative. This is a result of the exploratory nature of the project. Through field research, it was possible to examine the implementation and impact of the Holt v. Sarver litigation at a particular point in time. As noted in the body ot the study, as recently as March, 1976, the district court supplemented existing orders in the Holt case. In light of this and other limitations identified in the description of project methodology, it would be inappropriate to ascribe too great certainty to the conclusions of the study. Should this topic remain of interest, it is expected that subsequent research can treat this study as a foundation and build upon what has been learned.