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Law360 (June 9, 2020, 4:46 PM EDT ) A group of prisoners who filed a putative class action against Philadelphia and the head of its prison system in federal court over allegedly lax COVID-19 protocols reached a partial settlement with the city Monday aimed at implementing new health standards.
The partial settlement was reached last week and filed with the court Monday. It includes the right for each prisoner within the Philadelphia Department of Prisons to get a bar of soap and a fresh towel each week, the opportunity to shower daily, more vigorous cleaning schedules of common areas and restrooms, more masks, and a list of other new protocols.
The parties also indicated they will continue to negotiate outstanding elements related to social distancing and expect a separate agreement for those issues.
"The parties will discuss and negotiate the issues of social distancing and cohorting of incarcerated persons upon the completion of COVID-19 testing at PDP and upon their consultation with their respective medical advisors and experts," the parties said in the settlement document. "The parties anticipate a separate settlement agreement on those issues to be submitted to the court, but in the absence of an agreement on those issues, plaintiffs reserve the right to seek relief from the court."
The group of 10 prisoners filed the complaint in April, alleging the prison system was not following Centers for Disease Control guidelines for COVID-19, in violation of their basic rights under the U.S. Constitution. The prisoners sought injunctive relief, including the release of all prisoners over 55 and those with medical conditions that place them at heightened risk of severe illness or death from COVID-19.
The prisoners also alleged many incarcerated individuals are not provided with basic sanitary needs because soap must be purchased and not all prisoners are able to do so. On April 19, at least 120 prisoners had tested positive for COVID-19, which was more than double the infection rate of the civilian population of Philadelphia, according to the complaint.
The partial settlement includes that the PDP will clean prisoners' phones after each use; provide cleaning agents for prisoners to clean their sleeping areas; regular twice-weekly cleaning of cells; provide laundering, masks, towels, and undergarment clothing twice a week; and provide fresh linens and uniforms once per week.
The settlement also includes that staff and all people entering any PDP facility must wear masks, that each prisoner get 15 minutes of free calls each day while visits are suspended and that the PDP provide "free, unrecorded and confidential phone calls to legal counsel."
Counsel for the prisoners did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The city said Friday that earlier iterations of the protocols outlined in the settlement were published in late March and have "evolved" throughout the pandemic and litigation. The city also said that it had tested the entire prison population of 3,855 individuals, and 223 tested positive for COVID-19, or 6% of the population.
"This settlement recognizes that the early, proactive implementation of these measures by the department contributed to the PDP's successful mitigation of COVID-19," said City Solicitor Marcel S. Pratt in a statement Friday. "By memorializing those protocols in the agreement, the city provides assurances to plaintiffs that these successful efforts will continue and be modified as conditions warrant and improve. We thank counsel for plaintiffs for their collaborative approach to this important matter."
The prisoners are represented by Su Ming Yeh and Matthew A. Feldman of The Pennsylvania Institutional Law Project, and attorneys with Kairys Rudovsky Messing Feinberg & Lin LLP, the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania and Dechert LLP.
The defendants are represented by Craig M. Straw of the City of Philadelphia Law Department.
The case is Thomas Remick et al. v. City of Philadelphia et al., case number 2:20-cv-01959, in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
--Editing by Gemma Horowitz.
For a reprint of this article, please contact reprints@law360.com.
