On July 7, 1980, prisoners of the state of New York filed a lawsuit under Article 78 of the New York Corrections Rules and Regulations against the New York State Department of Corrections in the New York Supreme Court. The plaintiffs, who were represented by Prisoners' Legal Services of New York, alleged that their rights had been violated by the unconstitutional deprivation of "outdoor exercise." The plaintiffs, who who were permitted to exercise outside of their cells for at least one hour each day in any one of four rooms located above special housing unit at correctional facility, were denied the ability to exercise outdoors. The state regulation provided that weather providing, exercise must be out of doors.

On December 5, 1980, the New York Supreme Court (Judge Peter E. Corning) granted injunctive relief to the plaintiffs, finding that their rights had been violated. The court then ordered the defendants to comply with the regulations regarding outdoor exercise, concluding that the exercise that was provided was not "outdoors" as mandated by the regulation. Mathis v. Henderson, 437 N.Y.S.2d 34 (N.Y.S. Dec. 5, 1980). The court required the facility to submit a plan to the court for outdoor exercise in complaince with the regulation. We have no further information on the proceedings in this case.

Kristen Sagar - 10/31/2006


compress summary