Texas Prisons AC Mandate
Federal Judge Orders Texas Prisons Fully Air-Conditioned By The Year 2029
Anonymous
A federal judge has ordered Texas to install air conditioning throughout its prison system by Dec. 31, 2029, ruling that extreme heat in facilities without cooling violates the Constitution’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment. U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman said inmates have suffered illness, fainting, and deaths during summers when heat indexes can exceed 130 degrees, and he criticized the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for failing to respond with sufficient urgency. The agency has estimated that systemwide air conditioning would cost about $1.5 billion; as of the trial, cooling covered roughly 37% of the state’s prison beds. Pitman ordered the agency to immediately develop and implement a plan and provide progress reports every six months, while prisoner advocates called the decision a major victory after years of complaints about dangerous conditions. The ruling also puts pressure on Texas lawmakers and the agency’s multibillion-dollar budget plans for prison cooling and expansion.
Key Points
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The lawsuit began in 2023 with Bernie Tiede, a former mortician serving a life sentence whose murder case inspired the film “Bernie.” Prisoner-rights groups later joined the case and broadened the legal challenge.
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Judge Pitman sharply criticized the Texas Department of Criminal Justice for minimizing the heat problem, failing to collect reliable daily temperature data and, according to the ruling, having employees fabricate temperature logs and submit falsified evidence. He also rejected the agency’s claim that no prisoner had died from heat in more than a decade, saying the conclusion reflected inadequate testing.
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Pitman said the state’s existing installation pace would take roughly 23 more years to complete, far beyond the 2029 deadline, and ordered the work finished regardless of the eventual cost.
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The ruling complicates TDCJ’s proposed 2028–29 budget: the agency requested $289 million for prison air-conditioning and another $591.8 million for expansion dormitories with climate control, proposals it said would create more than 21,000 cooled beds.
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Dr. Amite Dominick of Texas Prisons Community Advocates said the decision confirmed that extreme heat in Texas prisons is deadly and that air conditioning is “the only real remedy,” reflecting the broader advocacy campaign that preceded the ruling.
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