article: On November 5, 2015, the plaintiffs, nine pretrial detainees, filed this class action in the United States District Court of New Jersey. The plaintiffs sued Middlesex County under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 for the deprivation of rights secured by the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution. The plaintiffs, represented by the ACLU and the New Jersey Office of the Public Defender, asked the court to declare that the conditions in solitary confinement were unconstitutional, to enjoin Middlesex County to take all of its inmates out of solitary confinement, and to award costs and reasonable attorneys' fees. The plaintiffs claimed that the conditions in C-Pod, the solitary confinement unit in Middlesex County Jail, were unconstitutional. Specifically, the plaintiffs claimed that they were locked in a small cell alone almost continuously; could not interact with other inmates; could not be visited by family; could not participate in religious, educational or rehabilitative programs; and were never allowed outdoors. The plaintiffs sought class action status. However, on January 4, 2016, Judge Peter G. Sheridan granted the plaintiffs' request to withdraw their pending motion for class certification without prejudice so that the ACLU attorneys could get acclimated to the case before proceeding with a dispositive motion. The parties then began settlement conversations. On May 24, 2017, the Court stayed discovery in order to further facilitate the parties’ settlement discussions. The parties reached a settlement with eight of the nine plaintiffs signing the agreement by June 19, 2018. The ninth plaintiff indicated he was not unhappy with the agreement, but did not want to sign. After failing to show and respond to requests to explaining absence from a scheduled conference, Magistrate Judge Tonianne J. Bongiovanni recommended this plaintiff’s claims be dismissed with prejudice. 2018 WL 4006809. Judge Peter G. Sheridan adopted the recommendation and dismissed this plaintiff’s claims with prejudice on August 22, 2018. 2018 WL 4005749. The eight remaining plaintiffs entered a private settlement agreement with the defendants on September 25, 2018. Under the settlement agreement, the county would continue to operate a precautionary supervision unit, but also provide 28 hours per week out of cells, access to recreation time, in-unit programming, and law library services. Protections used would involve less restrictive security measures. Disciplinary detention could no longer exceed 15 days for a single disciplinary charge and 30 days for multiple disciplinary charges. The county also implemented a mental health screening policy that allowed the director of mental health to stop inappropriate placements in solitary confinement. The settlement agreement permitted the plaintiffs’ counsel access to people detained in the jail, jail records, and the facility itself to ensure full compliance with the settlement. The defendants agreed to pay $11,123 in attorneys’ fees and cost. Under the agreement, any alleged non-compliance would first be brought to the defendant’s counsel, with the opportunity for mediation. The settlement agreement was enforceable for two years. If the mediation failed to resolve the issue, plaintiffs were permitted to move the Court for reinstatement or ask for a one-time one-year extension of the agreement. The two-year enforcement period began on the date the parties executed the agreement. Judge Peter G. Sheridan entered a stipulated of dismissal on October 25, 2018. As of March 21, 2019, the settlement is still in force.
summary: Pretrial detainees file lawsuit against Middlesex County in November 2015 to ameliorate the unconstitutional conditions of solitary confinement in the Middlesex County Jail. In September 2018, the parties reached a settlement agreement that restricted the maximum amount of time allowed in isolation and provides those in isolation with opportunities to interact with others.