Federal court orders Philadelphia to spend $25 million to fix understaffed prisons – Metro Philadelphia

After finding the city guilty of contempt of court, a federal judge ordered Mayor Cherelle Parker's administration to provide $25 million to improve conditions in Philadelphia's prisons.

The mandate, issued on Friday, August 16, contains more than 20 provisions, many of them with deadlines. The provisions include instructions to explore increased use of civilian staff and the possibility of transferring detainees to alternative facilities.

U.S. District Judge Gerald McHugh said the measures were developed in consultation with a court monitoring team that oversees the Philadelphia Department of Corrections as part of a 2022 settlement.

The settlement follows a class action lawsuit filed on behalf of inmates at the height of the coronavirus pandemic alleging inhumane conditions in prisons.

McHugh decided last month to hold the city in contempt of court for failing to meet the terms of the settlement, particularly requirements related to staffing levels and minimum time out of inmates' cells.

In recent years, the PDP has been plagued by, among other things, a serious personnel crisis, numerous escapes and violence.

In 2023, the department's security staffing levels decreased by 8% while the inmate population increased by 7%, according to the Court Observer's latest report. In March, more than 800 correctional officer positions were unfilled, a vacancy rate of nearly 50%.

“We are disappointed by the finding of contempt of court, but have the utmost respect for Judge McHugh and his judgment in crafting this sentence,” Prison Commissioner Michel Resnick said in a statement.

Resnick, whom Parker appointed to head the department in April, added that he hoped the requirements “will give the system the tools it needs to comply with regulations by removing obstacles to our efforts to recruit, hire and retain staff to provide consistent services to inmates.”

The legal team representing the incarcerated inmates had asked McHugh to impose a daily fine of $5 per inmate if he failed to meet the terms of the agreement. Such an agreement would have generated nearly $25,000 per day, and the lawyers argued that the funds should be paid to the inmates upon their release.

“The conditions in Philadelphia's prisons are truly terrible, and I think this order is a recognition of that,” said Matthew Feldman, senior attorney for the Pennsylvania Institutional Law Project, which is part of the legal team representing the inmates in the case. “The $25 million sum is very remarkable and shows how seriously the court is taking this and how serious the problem really is.”

Feldman told Metro that he and his colleagues would demand compensation for those detained if conditions did not significantly improve as a result of the ruling.

McHugh is requiring the Parker administration to deposit $25 million into a blocked account that can only be accessed to meet the requirements of his order. The judge prohibited the city from cutting the PDP's budget in the current or future years to recoup the money.

That amount is roughly equivalent to the total amount the city has saved from the PDP budget in recent years — mostly due to unspent salaries and benefits resulting from staff shortages, according to court documents.

Resnick is required to review “realistic, appropriate options” for transferring the inmates to another security facility and submit a report with his findings within four months, the order states.

To fill vacancies, the PDP must contract with an outside recruitment agency and explore the possibility of using civilian employees to fill some positions currently occupied by armed correctional officers.

The Philadelphia residency requirement has already been eliminated, but McHugh wants the city to open up hiring to applicants who live outside Pennsylvania.

In addition, the order requires the city to establish and fund an “Access to Care Team” within six months to ensure that prisoners receive timely and appropriate medical care.

City and PDP staff will also be tasked with collecting data on warrantless inmates who are behind bars solely because they cannot post bail. The vast majority of inmates at the State Road jails are held in pretrial detention.

Specifically, McHugh directs the city to collect information on inmates whose bail is less than $100,000, inmates with serious medical needs and those charged with misdemeanors or minor crimes, among others.

The unspoken implication is that prisoners in these categories could be eligible for release to relieve pressure on understaffed prisons.

In their filings opposing the contempt of court motion, city prosecutors pointed out that other agencies, such as the district attorney's office and the highest judicial authorities, also play a role in the development of the prison population and the length of time pretrial detainees spend behind bars.

Another argument they made is that Parker and Resnick need time to implement changes to improve the PDP.

Court-appointed monitor Cathleen Beltz wrote in a report released in March that the city had not acted urgently enough, opting instead for “a course of half-hearted action fraught with bureaucratic and political rigidity.”

Regarding that statement, Parker's lawyers explained in court documents that while that characterization may have been true of the previous mayoral administration, it “does not apply to the energy, investment and support” now flowing to the PDP.

“It would have been irresponsible of us not to seek a contempt conviction here, but to wait and see whether the new administration improves the situation,” Feldman said. “Our clients suffer every day, so we had to act now.”

Beltz is expected to release an updated report on prison conditions on September 30.