About 10 months ago, The Associated Press described what sounded like some turbulence in the settlement agreement that closed the American Civil Liberties Union lawsuit against Idaho's private prison contractor almost two years ago.
Just what triggered the ACLU's concerns was unclear, but the both the plaintiffs and Corrections Corporation of America pledged to work out their differences in good faith.
And that was just about the last anyone heard of the case.
Prior to that settlement, CCA stood accused of so understaffing the Idaho Correctional Center near Boise that inmate-on-inmate violence had escalated. ICC had been dubbed the "gladiator school" by the inmates on whose behalf ACLU filed a lawsuit.
To end the lawsuit, the private prison contractor promised it would:
- Expand the prison staffing by at least three more guards, which meant hiring at minimum seven people to cover the shifts.
- Require its correctional officers to undergo training at the Idaho Peace Officers Standards and Training academy. Those guards would undergo the same kind of training required of Idaho Department of Correction employees on such issues as inmates' rights and management.
- Separate inmates based on their risk to others. In other words, predators will not be housed with vulnerable prisoners.
- Report all felonies committed within the ICC to the Ada County sheriff.
- Prepare a paper trail documenting every time one inmate attacks another.
- Carry out the terms of its contract with the state correction department.
How many of those promises did the ACLU accuse CCA of violating?
Nobody was saying. The case was sealed from public inspection - an arrangement CCA would impose on a second lawsuit inmates have filed against the corporation.
In that case, the inmates allege CCA has put gangs in charge of prison tiers, and the gangs turned on some of the inmates. Idaho media groups, including this newspaper and the Moscow-Pullman Daily News, are in court to open the case to public scrutiny.
But no such effort will be required in the ACLU "gladiator school" lawsuit. Noting that Idaho pays CCA almost $30 million to run the prison, U.S. District Judge David Carter broke open the seal.
"With public money comes a public concern about how that money is spent," Carter wrote in an ruling issued last week.
All of which leads up to this week's court session before Carter. CCA is facing a contempt of court hearing, where several inmates will attend. It's open to the public.
CCA contended disclosure was "intended solely to gratify private spite, promote public scandal and circulate libelous statements" - an argument Carter slapped down.
There are 19 documents - including four separate judge's orders - that you are going to see for the first time. How much of this information will be redacted to suit CCA's interests is unclear, but the documents are expected to be released by next week.
At least one of the ACLU's contentions is now clear. In his opinion, Carter referred to CCA's admission that it accepted payment for 4,800 hours of staff time that people didn't work.
"Defendants have already publicized their contention that there were merely 'some inaccuracies' in staffing records at the Idaho Correctional Center," Carter wrote. "The Idaho Department of Correction put out a news release stating CCA admitted its prison employees 'falsified staffing records' for a 'small fraction' of CCA's staffing obligation, with no significant effect on prison safety. Plaintiffs do not believe that this is the full story."
What else is in dispute? Is CCA following its state contract? Has it followed through on pledges to boost staffing levels and training?
And who among the Idaho leaders who have so far refused to reconsider Idaho's ill-fated experiment in prison privatization - Gov. C.L. (Butch) Otter, correction board Chairwoman Robin Sandy or even state lawmakers - will attend the court session? The board of correction decided not to renew CCA's contract, but won't entertain a competing bid from the Department of Correction to manage ICC.
To Carter's credit, you're about to find out. - M.T.
