ACLU Seeks Equal Treatment for Death Row Inmates

The American Civil Liberties Union of Connecticut (ACLU-CT) today demanded widespread reform on Connecticut’s death row after a year’s worth of grievances were rejected by Connecticut Department of Corrections (DOC) officials.

In a letter sent today to DOC Commissioner Theresa Lantz, the ACLU-CT requested a meeting with her to address the denial of inmates’ meaningful access to religious services, meaningful access to exercise, and the denial of due process in the revocation of previous privileges like the ability to visit with family members without being separated by glass.

“These are inmates who have demonstrated exemplary behavior,” said David McGuire, Staff Attorney at the ACLU-CT. “To revoke their basic privileges that are afforded all other inmates without cause or formal justification is contrary to the fundamental fairness guaranteed by the Constitution’s right to due process.”

Five Death Row inmates, Robert Courschene, Richard Reynolds, Todd Rizzo, Eduardo Santiago, and Daniel Webb, are seeking to be treated like other prisoners with similar charges and disciplinary records. In early 2005, the administration at Northern Correctional Institution, where Death Row is housed, promised to work with the inmates to resolve some of these issues if the Death Row inmates would end their hunger strike. The Death Row inmates agreed to end the hunger strike, but no resolution has been discussed. In April 2007, the Death Row inmates went on another unsuccessful hunger strike. Following the 2007 hunger strike, Courschene, Reynolds, Rizzo, Santiago, and Webb and have all filed grievances with the prison administration at Northern Correctional Institution and have exhausted their administrative remedies as required by the Prison Litigation Reform Act before instituting any legal action.