NJ Prison Hit 94 Degrees As Inmates, Officers Lacked Air Conditioning

NEW JERSEY — Thousands of incarcerated individuals and corrections officers lacked air conditioning during the summer heatwaves, leaving cells as hot as 94 degrees, according to a new report from the New Jersey Office of the Corrections Ombudsperson. The conditions not only increased the risks of heat-related illnesses but also created additional security risks, the agency says.

Out of 11,000 people housed in New Jersey state prisons this summer, roughly 3,500 had no air conditioning in their living units. Around 3,000 corrections officers — almost a third of the New Jersey Department of Corrections's workforce — were assigned to non-temperature-controlled units during the summer months, according to the ombuds office.

Three facilities — Bayside State Prison, East Jersey State Prison and Garden State Correctional Facility — accounted for more than three-quarters of the state's units without air conditioning.

The ombuds office conducted temperature checks in each New Jersey prison in mid-July and early August. Cells within Bayside State Prison and Edna Mahan Correctional Facility reached 88 degrees in July. The agency measured 94 degrees in a Garden State Correctional Facility unit last month.

The Mid-State Correctional Facility, Northern State Prison and South Woods State Prison are fully air-conditioned, according to the report. Their temperature highs ranged from 74 to 80 degrees in July. The ombuds office didn't conduct August temperature checks for fully air-conditioned prisons.

People in the prisons described the temperatures in their living spaces as "unbearable," "beyond hot" and "like hell." The ombuds office heard reports of people engaging in "assaultive" behavior to get transferred to air-conditioned disciplinary housing assignments. Staff and labor leaders told the agency that the high heat increased irritability and slowed responses to security incidents.

"Because people detained in prison facilities cannot leave of their own accord and have limited control over their movement, possessions, and environment," the report says, "the state assumes a responsibility for their humane treatment, including a responsibility to protect them from potential harms associated with extended exposure to heat and cold."

But the ombuds office says Department of Corrections executive and facility leaders have taken "proactive and reactive steps" to mitigate the heat. But the high heat will continue to surface without state appropriations for major building repairs, the office warned.

At the Garden State Correctional Facility, one person reported that when the heat becomes unbearable, incarcerated people will "catch a charge" to get sanctioned to time in the air-conditioned Restorative Housing Unit. If true, the scenario endangers other incarcerated people and can carry long-lasting consequences for the individual.

The Department of Corrections issued a memo July 8 with statewide heat-mitigation protocols for when indoor temperatures reach 86 degrees. The memo encouraged several short-term strategies for enduring heat: providing ice, cooling towels and extra showers, while promoting the increase of fluids, light clothing and open windows.

The facilities provided ice on hot days, the ombuds office says. But while some distributed ice several times a day for free, others required payment or only provided ice on a single shift each day.

Bayside State Prison has no air conditioning in general-population housing units. The ombuds office observed unit doors open and industrial fans operating within the tiers. The facility had limited ice and made plans to repurpose ice machines from Southern State Correctional Facility, which recently closed. But during the heatwave in the third month of July, the ombuds office received more than two-dozen complaints from people in Bayside claiming that staff wasn't providing ice to a specific housing unit.

The ombuds office selects several ways to mitigate heat, such as providing fans and coolers free in the summer, exploring lighter clothing options for the season, and including cooling stations throughout facilities. But state lawmakers should also include prison cooling and heating infrastructure in their budget priorities in the coming years, the agency said.

"The HVAC infrastructure, insulation, roofing and window repairs needed will likely cost tens of millions of dollars," the report says. "Getting these capital projects approved, paid for, scheduled, and completed could also take years. But even when the state is downsizing its prison population and aiming to achieve savings from facility closures, these investments should be prioritized."

Find the full report here.