Letter: Treating inmates right affects us all

Saturday, Feb. 4, 2006 | 12:31 p.m.

Molly Ball's excellent article in the Jan. 31 issue of the Las Vegas Sun addresses an issue that concerns all Nevadans. The article, "Prison's medicine in short supply," reveals that prison officials' lackadaisical attitude toward providing necessary medical care to an incarcerated individual is a serious civil rights issue that can result in costly litigation. Litigation against the state affects everyone because the resultant financial judgments hit taxpayer pocketbooks.

Since the article illustrates that state officials in charge of this serious civil rights violation are aware of the problem, this leads to increased culpability. No excuses are good enough to avoid responsibility for the needless suffering of inmates.

Citizens must be educated that litigation affects everyone. For example, the Americans with Disabilities Act is a real issue in our prisons. The ACLU is aware of the need for ADA enforcement in our prisons and engages in litigation on the matter. Consequently, states that violate the civil rights of prisoners may eventually be mandated by the federal government to rectify their actions. This is necessary in Nevada due to rampant abuses against the incarcerated here.

Despite the initial hardship to taxpayers, civil rights, ADA and/or wrongful death lawsuits must be brought against employees of the Nevada Corrections Department who fail to provide necessary medical care to prisoners, including lifesaving medication. This will draw attention to the needless and cruel suffering of inmates and ultimately result in less lawsuits down the road because prisoners will be treated in an equitable manner.

Juli T. Star-Alexander, Las Vegas

Editor's note: The writer is executive director of Redress Inc., a nonprofit group for those who believe they have been abused by the legal system.