In a withering ruling Friday, Judge Roslyn Silver opted against imposing additional contempt-of-court fines against the state for its longstanding noncompliance and instead said she will take the case to trial. The judge said the state's failure to provide adequate medical care for prisoners has led to suffering and preventable deaths.
"The refusal by the state of Arizona to live up to the promises it made cannot be countenanced any longer," said Corene Kendrick, a lawyer for the American Civil Liberties Union who represents prisoners in the case. "We need to go to trial." Silver wrote the fines didn't motivate the state to comply with the settlement. "There does not appear to be a contempt sanction robust enough to coerce compliance," Silver wrote.
In the nine years since it was filed, the lawsuit has cost the state US$20 million, including US$10 million for attorneys defending prison officials and US$8.1 million for lawyers who pressed the case on behalf of inmates, according to records.The settlement arose out of a lawsuit that alleged the state's prisons didn't meet the basic requirements for providing adequate medical and mental health care for prisoners.