As temperatures rise, judge orders Louisiana authorities to help protect prisoners working in fields

By Margie Mason and Robin McDowell
Associated Press Press Agency

NEW ORLEANS — In the face of searing summer temperatures, a federal judge ordered Louisiana to take steps to protect the health and safety of imprisoned workers toiling in the fields of a former slave plantation, saying they faced “a significant risk of injury or death.” The state immediately appealed the decision.

District Judge Brian Jackson issued a temporary stay of execution Tuesday, giving the state Department of Corrections seven days to submit a plan to improve conditions at the so-called agricultural frontier at Louisiana State Prison, also known as Angola.

Jackson called on the state to make changes to its heat policy. He cited problems such as inadequate shade, a lack of work breaks and a failure to provide inmates with sunscreen and other basic protection, including medical screenings for those most vulnerable to high temperatures. But the judge stopped short of shutting down the farm line entirely when heat indexes reach 88 degrees Fahrenheit (31.1 degrees Celsius) or higher, as the plaintiffs had requested.

The order comes amid growing nationwide attention to prison labor. two-year Associated Press investigation linked the supply chains of some of the world’s largest and most high-profile companies — from Walmart to Burger King — to Angola and other prison farms where imprisoned workers are paid pennies an hour or nothing. Several companies, including Cargill, later said they had cut ties or were in the process of cutting ties with prisons or companies that use prison labor.

As temperatures continue to rise across the state, “coping with the heat in Louisiana has become a matter of life and death,” Jackson wrote in his 78-page ruling. “Conditions at the farm boundary ‘create a substantial risk of injury or death.’”

Lydia Wright of The Promise of Justice Initiative, an attorney representing the plaintiffs, praised the decision.

“The farm line has been causing physical and psychological harm for generations,” she told the AP, adding that it was the first time a court had ruled the practice cruel and unusual punishment. “It’s an incredible moment for those incarcerated and their families.”

The Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections “strongly disagrees” with the court’s overall decision and has filed a notice of appeal with the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, spokesman Ken Pastorick said.

“We are still reviewing the ruling in its entirety and reserve the right to comment on it in more detail at a later date,” he said.