Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/10pdf/09-1233.pdf
Page Number: 19

Cite as:  563 U. S. ____ (2011) 

13 

Opinion of the Court 

actually  produce  physical  ‘torture  or  a  lingering  death.’ ”  
Estelle  v.  Gamble,  429  U. S.  97,  103  (1976)  (quoting  In  re 
Kemmler,  136  U. S.  436,  447  (1890));  see  generally  A.
Elsner, Gates of Injustice: The Crisis in America’s Prisons
(2004).  Just as a prisoner may starve if not fed, he or she
may suffer or die if not provided adequate medical care.  A 
prison that deprives prisoners of basic sustenance, includ-
ing  adequate  medical  care,  is  incompatible  with  the  con-
cept of human dignity and has no place in civilized society. 
If  government  fails  to  fulfill  this  obligation,  the  courts 
have  a  responsibility  to  remedy  the  resulting  Eighth
Amendment violation.  See Hutto v. Finney, 437 U. S. 678, 
687,  n.  9  (1978).    Courts  must  be  sensitive  to  the  State’s 
interest in punishment, deterrence, and rehabilitation, as
well  as  the  need  for  deference  to  experienced  and  expert 
prison administrators faced with the difficult and danger-
ous task of housing large numbers of convicted criminals.
See Bell v. Wolfish, 441 U. S. 520, 547–548 (1979).  Courts 
nevertheless must not shrink from their obligation to “en-
force  the  constitutional  rights  of  all  ‘persons,’  including
prisoners.”  Cruz  v.  Beto,  405  U. S.  319,  321  (1972)  (per 
curiam).  Courts may not allow constitutional violations to 
continue simply because a remedy would involve intrusion
into the realm of prison administration.

Courts  faced  with  the  sensitive  task  of  remedying  un-
constitutional  prison  conditions  must  consider  a  range  of
available  options,  including  appointment  of  special  mas-
ters  or  receivers  and  the  possibility  of  consent  decrees.
When  necessary  to  ensure  compliance  with  a  constitu-
tional mandate, courts may enter orders placing limits on
a prison’s population.  By its terms, the PLRA restricts the
circumstances  in  which  a  court  may  enter  an  order  “that
has the purpose or effect of reducing or limiting the prison
population.”  18  U. S. C.  §3626(g)(4).    The  order  in  this 
case does not necessarily require the State to release any
prisoners.  The  State  may  comply  by  raising  the  design