[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 67 (Friday, May 22, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E960]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




LIMITING JURISDICTION OF FEDERAL COURTS WITH RESPECT TO PRISON RELEASE 
                                 ORDERS

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                               speech of

                            HON. BART STUPAK

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 19, 1998

  Mr. STUPAK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to oppose H.R. 3718, a bill to 
limit the authority of federal judges to remedy inhumane prison 
conditions.
  Under this bill, no individual convicted of a felony could be 
released from prison--or not admitted to a prison--by a federal court 
solely on the basis of prison conditions. In many instances, this bill 
would keep women prisoners who are sexually abused in the inhumane 
prison condition or keep mentally ill patients who are physically 
abused in an inhumane prison situation. It also means that the court 
would be prohibited from remedying Constitutional violations in 
prisons, including prisons so overcrowded that they violate the Eighth 
Amendment ban on ``cruel and unusual punishment.''
  Another flawed aspect of this bill is the provision which terminates 
all ongoing consent decrees in prison condition cases, even those which 
do not involve prisoner release orders. A consent decree is a voluntary 
contract between two parties to end the active phase of litigation. 
This bill does not close the case--it simply prevents the states from 
negotiating a resolution of the case. In many of these cases, however, 
the state or local government wants to remain under the consent decree 
rather than expend resources litigating over conditions that are 
clearly unconstitutional. This bill forces states to litigate cases 
they don't want to litigate, and is an incredible breach of states' 
rights.
  One of the decrees that would be terminated under this bill is one in 
my home state of Michigan. A consent decree was entered in Michigan to 
protect mentally ill prisoners who were routinely confirmed in 
isolation without mental health care. Several inmates committed suicide 
and engaged in self-mutilation, including two prisoners who cut off 
their penises. This legislation would end the Michigan decree, and 
force the state to enter into costly litigation in order to address a 
problem that has been solved by the consent decree.
  Congress has no business dictating to states how they should resolve 
litigation involving state institutions. If a state has decided that a 
consent decree best meets the state's needs, Congress should stay out 
of it.
  Mr. Speaker, this bill overreaches the bounds of the Constitution and 
violates the basic tenets of states' rights. It also makes it difficult 
for the court to remedy inhumane prison conditions, and I urge my 
colleagues to vote to defeat this misguided provision.

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