IN-DEPTH: Texas Prisons are ‘Cooking’ Their Inmates in Cells Without Air-Conditioning, Families Say

Advocates for cooling Texas prisons pray during a news conference at the Texas Capitol in Austin, Texas, on July 18, 2023. Eric Gay/AP Photo

Summertime in Texas is brutal, and for those without access to air-conditioning, it can be deadly. Since mid-June, excessive temperatures reaching 105 to 110 degrees and heat index values up to 120 have baked the region. And the next seven-day forecast shows more of the same.

Heat-related emergency department visits have surged this summer, and by the end of June, 13 deaths across the state were attributed to hyperthermia, an abnormally high body temperature caused by excessive heat exposure.

“Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors,” the National Weather Service said on Wednesday in an excessive heat warning for North Texas. Similar advisories were issued across a large portion of the state.

But family members of incarcerated individuals say checking on loved ones in un-air-conditioned state prisons will not save them from indoor temperatures that regularly soar past 120 degrees or higher.

“They’re cooking our inmates in the Texas prison system,” Tona Southards Naranjo said last month at a rally outside the Texas Capitol in Austin. Ms. Naranjo believes excessive heat played a role in her son’s death in prison in June.

Only about 30 percent of Texas prisons are fully air-conditioned. As of June 30, there were more than 128,000 inmates housed across the state’s 100 units, which means an estimated 86,000 are living in un-cooled cells, according to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ), which runs the state prison system.

 TDCJ Communications Director Amanda Hernandez said 3,598 cooled beds had been added over the last five years, and a current project is underway to add air conditioning to 5,861 beds. 

“This will bring the total to 9,459 beds added between FY 18-23,” Ms. Hernandez told The Epoch Times in an email, adding that there are approximately 42,000 cooled beds across the units.

But Texas Prisons Community Advocates (TPCA) say TDCJ’s efforts are not enough. They are urging lawmakers to pass legislation to install air conditioning in the prisons to make the conditions more humane for inmates and staff members.

“Texas is a very punitive state, and the idea is, you know, [if] you go to prison, you need to suffer,” said TPCA President Amite Dominick told The Epoch Times.

During the recent 88th Legislative session, several bills, including House Bill 1708, were introduced that would require TDCJ to maintain temperatures between 65 and 85 degrees within its facilities, but none survived.

Ms. Dominick, a supporter of House Bill 1708, believes that despite the state’s record $32 billion surplus, top lawmakers do not want to appropriate the funds the state says it would need to overhaul the outdated buildings and install air conditioning.

In June, lawmakers approved the state’s 2024-2025 biennium budget, which provides more than $85 million in additional funding to TDCJ to complete “deferred maintenance” (pdf).

“TDCJ received a historic infusion of funding for major repair and improvement projects at facilities. The Legislature provided approximately $174 million ($89 million in Article 5 and $85 million in Article 9) above our base budget for those projects like roof repairs, security fencing and lighting, fire alarms, wastewater improvements, and air conditioning,” Ms. Hernandez said.

“Specifically, the $85 million will go toward air conditioning. The funding will make for significant improvements across the system, and we are very appreciative of the investment in TDCJ.”

It would cost an estimated $1.1 billion to install air conditioning in all units, according to Ms. Hernandez.

The Texas State Penitentiary at Huntsville, now known as the “Walls Unit,” is the oldest unit and has been in operation since 1849. Eight others are over 100 years old.

Death in a Prison Cell

Ms. Naranjo spoke to her son Jon Southards from his prison-issued tablet three times on June 28. The 36-year-old told his mom that it was so hot in his cell that he could barely breathe.

Just hours after urging her son to ask the guards for water and to turn on a fan, Mr. Southards was found unconscious in his cell.

He had been serving a 20-year sentence for burglary, which his mom said he received justifiably, The Dallas Morning News reported. Mr. Southards was housed in the Estelle Unit in Huntsville, Texas, which has about 3,000 inmates, but only 980 beds are air-conditioned.

Shortly before midnight, Ms. Naranjo’s son was pronounced dead. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) cited cardiac arrest as his initial cause of death, according to the report. The agency said it is still investigating Mr. Southards’s cause of death, but multiple studies indicate extreme heat can lead to cardiac death.

“There is strong evidence that exposure to extreme heat directly leads to greater cardiovascular mortality,” according to a summary of findings published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (pdf).

Ms. Hernandez said TDCJ knows that some inmates are at a greater risk of heat-related injury.

“These individuals are identified through an automated heat sensitivity score that uses information from the inmate’s health record. Individuals who have a heat sensitivity score receive priority placement in a housing area that is air-conditioned,” she said.

One inmate compared the heat in his cell to a brick pizza oven.

“I have a passion for pizza, but I never imagined that I would be one,” an inmate named Justin wrote in a recent blog post titled Texas Pizzeria.

“My cell has an area of 11.25‘ x 7.5’, is 8' tall, [and is] entirely composed of concrete with metal furniture. Each cell has an outside facing wall, some with two, which soak up heat and will retain thermal energy very effectively,” he continued, adding that temperatures inside the cells have been recorded at 120 degrees and higher. The inmate does not include his last name in the blog.

Despite the extreme heat conditions, Ms. Hernandez said the agency had treated only nine inmates and 25 staff members for heat-related illness this year.  She said there had been no heat deaths in over a decade.

“We take numerous precautions to lessen the effects of hot temperatures for those incarcerated within our facilities,” she said. “These efforts work. In 2023, there [were] nine inmates who required medical care beyond first aid for heat-related injuries, and none were fatal. TDCJ has not had a heat death since 2012.”

No Respite From the Heat

TDCJ says inmates housed in cells without air conditioning have access to “an array of measures” to keep them safe from the extreme temperatures.

“Everyone has access to ice and water. Fans are strategically placed in facilities to move the air. Inmates have access to a fan, and they can access respite areas when needed,” Ms. Hernandez said.

But family members, former staff, and prison advocates say those measures are lacking in reality.

TDCJ officers are responsible for delivering ice and water to the inmates regularly throughout the day, former officer April Davis told The Epoch Times in an interview.

“A lot of officers just don’t do it,” Ms. Davis said, adding that some older officers have trouble carrying the buckets up the stairs, others are tired and dehydrated themselves, and some do not believe the inmates deserve the effort.

“They’re still human, and they have a right to life as well, so giving them ice water is very, very important,” she said.

But often, the water they get is not cold, and some turn to drinking water from their toilets.

“They have water in their cells from the sink, toilet combo, but a lot of them resorted to using the toilet water [for drinking] because it was cooler than the sink water,” Ms. Davis said.

Others flood their cells with toilet water to lie down in or for a reason to get out of the cell to get relief from the heat, she explained.

Inmates who have help from the outside can purchase a 9” personal fan from the commissary for $23. Cooling t-shirts and cooling towels are also available for purchase for $5-8.50 and $2.25, respectively.

Still, these items do little to help bring relief, according to former inmate Johnathan Hudson, who was recently released from the Gib Lewis Unit in Woodville.

He said as the heat rises, so does the tension among inmates and staff.

“That’s when people get really agitated and irritated because it’s so hot,” Mr. Hudson said. “It’s not only us ... the officers are walking around sweating, or they’re mad because they’re doing mandatory overtime.”

Mr. Hudson, who pleaded guilty to intoxicated manslaughter, admitted he made “foolish decisions” when he was young, but that prison allowed him to turn his life around.

Democrats Call on Abbott

In late July, Democrat state Rep. Christian Manual, along with 28 other Democrats, sent a letter to Gov. Greg Abbott urging him to add the issue of air conditioning state prisons as a priority agenda item for the next special session.

“Despite progress made during the 88th regular session regarding correctional facilities, significant and intricate issues still demand attention, specifically the lack of ACs amidst this sweltering heat,” the letter posted on Facebook reads. 

“As the temperatures continue to rise, it is essential to address the health and safety risks associated with extreme heat conditions. I respectfully urge you to add this issue as a priority agenda item on the proclamation for the next special session to address the lack of air conditioning and respite areas (cooling areas) for incarcerated individuals and staff within our Texas correctional facilities.”

The lawmakers reminded the Republican governor that the current conditions pose risks to the safety of the inmates and the staff.

“Treating incarcerated individuals in state custody with respect and providing them with fundamental necessities is not about condoning their actions but rather upholding principles of humanity. Respecting their basic needs contributes to maintaining a secure and orderly prison environment. This approach benefits both the incarcerated individuals and dedicated staff,” the letter continued.

Mr. Abbott’s office did not respond to The Epoch Times’s request for comment.

“I ask you to consider the gravity of the situation, as we are all responsible for the safety and well-being of all Texans.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.