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Louisiana’s prison system often holds prisoners for weeks or months at a time. After all, they should be released from detention after the completion of their sentence. US Department of Justice stated in the lawsuit filed on Friday.
The lawsuit against the state comes after a multi-year investigation into the pattern of “Systematic over-incarceration” which violates prisoners’ rights and costs taxpayers millions of dollars per year.
Since at least 2012, more than a quarter of inmates scheduled to be released from Louisiana prisons have been held beyond their release date, according to DOJ data.
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Louisiana state prisons often hold prisoners long after they should be released after completing their sentences, the DOJ said. (AP)
The Justice Department warned Louisiana officials last year that they might file lawsuits against the state if they couldn’t fix the problem. Lawyers for the department argued that the state used “Little effort” has been made to resolve the issue. It noted that such attempts to make amends were “inadequate” and represented “Willful indifference” to prisoners’ constitutional rights
“(T)he right to personal freedom includes the right to be released from confinement on time after the court-imposed period has expired,” Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clark said in a statement.
“Imprisoning people indefinitely … not only interferes with individual freedoms; But it also erodes public confidence in the justice and enforcement of our laws,” the statement added.
More than a quarter of inmates scheduled to be released from Louisiana prisons since at least 2012 have been held past their release date. Ministry of Justice said (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry and state Attorney General Liz Merrill, both Republicans This problem is said to be caused by “Failed criminal justice reform” driven by “Past Management”
“Over the past year, we have taken important steps to keep Louisianans safe. and ensuring that those who commit crimes do so on time,” Landry and Merrill said in a joint statement with The Associated Press. “The state of Louisiana is committed to upholding the constitutional rights of Louisiana citizens.”
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Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry speaks at the CPAC Texas 2022 conference at Hilton Anatole. (Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images)
Both government officials also claimed the case was President Biden’s last ditch effort. who will resign from his position next month It reasoned that President Trump’s incoming administration would not pursue this case.
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Supporters have challenged the conditions. in the Louisiana prison system many times. This includes Angola. It is the largest maximum security prison in the country. where convicts hand-picked vegetables on 18,000 acres of land. The site was once Angola Plantations, Isaac Franklin’s slave plantation, and is named after Angola. It was the country of origin of many of the slaves who worked there.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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