SANTA FE – The governor of New Mexico says a preliminary agreement has been reached on living conditions for prison inmates that would resolve long-running litigation shaped by the aftermath of deadly 1980 riots at the state penitentiary.
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham announced Wednesday the preliminary settlement agreement in federal court aimed at ensuring that inmates are afforded constitutional protections to humane treatment.
The agreement would end the so-called Duran consent decree that established requirement for conditions within the state corrections system.
The Corrections Department has agreed to transfer hundreds of inmates among facilities to ensure adequate individual living space and to take new steps toward increasing staffing at prisons.
Lujan Grisham says the agreement gives the state flexibility in developing new policies on living conditions and relieves future litigation costs.
