Civil Rights Class Action Challenges Broken Criminal Justice System in Louisiana
Rebecca Ramaswamy, Staff Attorney, Promise of Justice Initiative
In Louisiana, State Incompetence Can Keep You in Prison—Even When a Judge Says You Should Be Free
Legally, Brian Humphrey was a free man from the moment he was sentenced by a judge in Bossier Parish, Louisiana. He had already spent time in jail while waiting to be sentenced, and the judge gave him credit for that time served—enough to cover his entire sentence. He should have been released immediately that day—April 16, 2019. Instead, the sheriff took Brian back to the jail, and two days later, Brian—who should have been a free man—was transferred to a prison. He waited in that prison for weeks, with no idea of when he would be released. On May 13, 2019, the state finally got around to processing his paperwork and realized that he had no time to serve. He was released that same day—27 days after his legal release date.
Brian Humphrey spent 27 extra days in prison, nearly a month. But what happened to Brian was not an aberration; it’s not even unusual in Louisiana. The Louisiana Department of Public Safety & Corrections (LDOC) “overdetains” people—holds them past their legal release dates—as a matter of practice. In fact, the LDOC overdetains thousands of people every year —some for a few days, some (like Brian) for weeks, and some for months… or years.
Brian is now the named plaintiff in PJI’s latest class action lawsuit (joined by the Law Office of William Most, and Loevy & Loevy) against the LDOC Secretary, James LeBlanc. Read the complaint here.
Louisiana is overdetaining around 2,000 people a year, an average of over 70 days per person.
Secretary LeBlanc has known about the state’s overdetention problem since at least 2012 and has done virtually nothing since to ensure that Louisiana prisoners are released on time. In 2012, a team of LDOC staff performed a review of the agency’s time calculation processes, which revealed a widespread pattern of people being held past their legal release dates. Specifically, the investigation found that when the LDOC calculated the release dates of inmates, 83% were eligible for “immediate release . . . due to an earlier release date.” The LDOC learned through this investigation that the state was overdetaining over 2,000 people each year, with an average of 71.69 “overdue days” per person who was overdetained.
These 2012 findings should have set off alarm bells. Under Louisiana law, confining any person without legal authority to do so is false imprisonment. And the United States Supreme Court has said that, while some extra time to process paperwork may be necessary, it is unreasonable to imprison a person any longer than 48 hours after they are entitled to release. Louisiana’s imprisonment of people for months after they are entitled to release flagrantly violates the laws of Louisiana and the United States.
Brian lost 27 days of his life to false incarceration. 27 days to start rebuilding his life and re-assimilate into society. 27 days where he could have looked for a job. PJI is demanding that the LDOC fix this gross infringement on the rights of its citizens.
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About The Promise of Justice Initiative (PJI):
The Promise of Justice Initiative (PJI) is a New Orleans based nonprofit that works to create positive change for people in the criminal justice at the intersection of direct services, impact litigation, and community engagement.
We believe in a world where our justice system values each person; a world where the system supports rehabilitation, and a world where we approach justice with a lens of healing and restoration for those who are harmed. This world will be safer and more secure for all people. Learn more about our work.
