Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-2_90-cv-00520/USCOURTS-caed-2_90-cv-00520-422/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 550
Nature of Suit: Prisoner - Civil Rights (U.S. defendant)
Cause of Action: 42:1983 Prisoner Civil Rights

---

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

1

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

RALPH COLEMAN, et al.,

Plaintiffs, No. 2:90-cv-0520-LKK-JFM (PC)

vs.

ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER,

et al.,

Defendants. ORDER

 /

Pursuant to court order, this matter came on for status conference on March 29,

2010. Michael Bien, Esq., appeared as counsel for plaintiffs. Debbie Vorous, Deputy Attorney

General, appeared as counsel for defendants. The status conference was set in an order filed

nearly one month after formal completion of the Mental Health Assessment and Referral Project

(hereafter referred to as MHARP), which began in March 2009 and concluded at the end of

December 2009. Under MHARP, defendants, with the guidance of the special master, conducted

a special assessment of unmet need for inpatient hospital care among Coleman class members. 

The purpose of the status conference was for the court to 

hear from defendants concerning the steps they have taken and are

taking to ensure that the referral and transfer of inmates to higher

levels of care is proceeding in a way that will avoid the need for

any future special assessments of unmet need and will ensure that

/////

Case 2:90-cv-00520-KJM-SCR Document 3831 Filed 03/31/10 Page 1 of 4
1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

2

those who required inpatient care are referred and admitted in a

timely manner.

Order, filed January 27, 2010, at 7. Plaintiffs and defendants both filed status conference

statements accompanied by evidentiary material, including, with plaintiffs’ report, a copy of the

MHARP report prepared by defendants and submitted to the special master. 

It is evident from review of the papers filed by the parties and information

provided by the special master that MHARP represented a substantial undertaking and that the

assessment process was conducted in a thorough and diligent manner. It is also evident that

defendants have, as they report, taken “incremental steps toward establishing a sustainable

process of identification and referral for those inmate-patients who need a higher level of care.” 

Defendants’ Status Report, filed March 26, 2010, at 10. At this juncture, it is critical that

defendants continue that progress. To that end, the special master will be directed to monitor

defendants’ implementation of their policies and practices regarding referral and transfer of

Coleman class members for inpatient care. The special master’s monitoring shall include, as

necessary, collection, review and analysis of relevant data. If at any point during monitoring it

becomes apparent to the special master that deficiencies in defendants’ implementation of said

policies and practices threaten the sustainability of the process, he shall take all steps necessary to

ensure that defendants correct such deficiencies. The special master shall report to the court on

defendants’ identification and referral process by the end of the year, either in his regular

monitoring report or in a special report. 

As with the Unidentified Needs Assessment conducted in 2004 and 2005, 

MHARP resulted in identification of a significant number of inmates who needed but had not

been referred for inpatient care. As a result of MHARP, the number of high custody inmates on

the wait list for inpatient care had grown, by February 28, 2010, to approximately 574 male

////

////

Case 2:90-cv-00520-KJM-SCR Document 3831 Filed 03/31/10 Page 2 of 4
1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

 The number of inmates waiting for acute inpatient care had apparently grown to 97 by 1

March 16, 2010.

3

inmates waiting for intermediate care and 64 male inmates waiting for acute inpatient care. In 1

addition, there was a wait list for female admissions to inpatient care. The size of the wait lists

suggests that the short-term bed projects that have and will come on line will not be sufficient to

eliminate the wait lists for inpatient care. Further, defendants’ long-term bed projects will not be

activated for three years. Defendants must forthwith direct their attention to solving the ongoing,

and growing, problem of these wait lists. To that end, defendants will be directed to meet with

the special master over the next ninety days to develop a plan to address this serious and

substantial problem.

In accordance with the above, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that:

1. The special master shall monitor defendants’ implementation of their policies

and practices regarding referral and transfer of Coleman class members for inpatient care. This

monitoring shall include, as necessary, collection, review and analysis of relevant data. If at any

point during monitoring it becomes apparent to the special master that the sustainability of

defendants’ inpatient referral process is jeopardized by deficiencies uncovered during

monitoring, he shall take all steps necessary to ensure that defendants correct such deficiencies. 

The special master shall report to the court on defendants’ identification and referral process by

the end of the year, either in his regular monitoring report or in a special report. 

2. Within ninety days, under the guidance of the special master defendants shall

work together to develop a plan to reduce or eliminate the wait lists for inpatient care and, in the

interim, to better serve the treatment needs of Coleman class members placed on such lists. The

/////

/////

/////

/////

Case 2:90-cv-00520-KJM-SCR Document 3831 Filed 03/31/10 Page 3 of 4
1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

4

special master shall consult with plaintiffs as appropriate during this process. The plan shall be

filed with the court within one hundred twenty days from the date of this order.

DATED: March 30, 2010.

Case 2:90-cv-00520-KJM-SCR Document 3831 Filed 03/31/10 Page 4 of 4