Filed Date: Sept. 9, 1974
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In 1974, a group of inmates filed a section 1983 class action suit, claiming that the Chatham County Jail was extremely overcrowded. Defendants agreed that the jail was overcrowded, and litigation abated during construction of a new jail. After completion of the new jail, inmates who remained in the old jail renewed their challenge to the crowded conditions of the old jail once again, and, in 1981, the District Court for the Southern District of Georgia (Judge Berry Edenfield) placed a temporary cap of 446 inmates on the jail and ordered defendants to reduce the population to a manageable level. Over the next several years, plaintiffs tried on several occasions to have the court hold defendants in contempt of the court order, but the court refused. Finally, in 1988, the court fined defendants over $30,000 for violating the population cap. Defendants appealed.
In 1990, the Eleventh Circuit vacated the district court's decision and remanded for further proceedings in order to allow defendants the opportunity to show cause why they were not in contempt. Mercer v. Mitchell, 908 F.2d 763 (11th Cir. 1990). The docket for this case is not available on PACER, and therefore our information ends with the last reported decision in 1990.
Summary Authors
Lauren Cutson (5/20/2005)
Tjoflat, Gerald Bard (Florida)
Bass, James F. Jr. (Georgia)
Garrard, Emily E. (Georgia)
Tjoflat, Gerald Bard (Florida)
Last updated March 26, 2024, 3:10 a.m.
Docket sheet not available via the Clearinghouse.State / Territory: Georgia
Case Type(s):
Key Dates
Filing Date: Sept. 9, 1974
Case Ongoing: Perhaps, but long-dormant
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
inmates of the Chatham County Jail
Public Interest Lawyer: Unknown
Filed Pro Se: Unknown
Class Action Sought: Yes
Class Action Outcome: Granted
Defendants
Chatham County jail (Chatham), County
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Constitutional Clause(s):
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: Plaintiff
Nature of Relief:
Injunction / Injunctive-like Settlement
Source of Relief:
Order Duration: 1981 - 0
Issues
Jails, Prisons, Detention Centers, and Other Institutions:
Type of Facility: