Opinion
Civil Action 5:15-CV-41-MTT-CHW
04-19-2024
TIMOTHY GUMM, et al., Plaintiffs, v. BENJAMIN FORD, et al., Defendants.
FOR DEFENDANTS: Elizabeth M. Crowder, Assistant Attorney General FOR PLAINTIFFS: Vanessa Carroll, Ebony Brown, Ryan Primerano, SOUTHERN CENTER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS, James F. Bogan III, C.Allen Garrett Jr., Tamara Serwer Caldas Stephanie N. Bedard Ga. Bar No. 825614 KILPATRICK TOWNSEND& STOCKTON LLP
FOR DEFENDANTS: Elizabeth M. Crowder, Assistant Attorney General
FOR PLAINTIFFS: Vanessa Carroll, Ebony Brown, Ryan Primerano, SOUTHERN CENTER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS, James F. Bogan III, C.Allen Garrett Jr., Tamara Serwer Caldas Stephanie N. Bedard Ga. Bar No. 825614 KILPATRICK TOWNSEND& STOCKTON LLP
ADDENDUM AGREEMENT
Plaintiffs and Defendants hereby enter this Addendum Agreement as a resolution of Plaintiffs' motion for an order to show cause why Defendants should not be held in contempt of the Settlement Agreement and injunction in this case. (Doc. 308.)
A. Introduction
1. The parties incorporate by reference and reaffirm the terms of the Settlement Agreement (Doc. 207-1) and injunction (Doc. 256) as if they were set forth verbatim herein. The parties agree that all terms of the Settlement Agreement and injunction shall remain in effect under the terms provided herein.
2. The parties agree that in exchange for an agreement by Plaintiffs to withdraw their pending motion for an order to show cause why Defendants should not be held in contempt (Doc. 308), the Settlement Agreement shall be modified as set forth below.
3. The parties agree that the Court has jurisdiction to modify the Settlement Agreement and injunction under Paragraph 78 of the Settlement Agreement, Rule 60(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and the Court's inherent authority.
4. The Parties agree that the prospective relief set forth in the Settlement Agreement and in this Addendum Agreement satisfies the requirements of 18 U.S.C. § 3626(a)(1)(A) in that the relief is narrowly drawn, extends no further than necessary to correct the alleged violations of those federal rights asserted by Plaintiffs in the Third Amended Complaint (Doc. 140), and is the least intrusive means necessary to correct the violations of federal rights. The relief set forth in the Settlement Agreement and in this Addendum Agreement will not have an adverse impact on public safety or the operation of the criminal justice system, nor will it require or permit government officials to exceed their authority under state or local law, or otherwise violate state or local law.
B. Duration of Settlement Agreement and Injunction
5. The Settlement Agreement and injunction shall remain in force until January 6, 2024, which is 18 months from the date that it is currently set to expire.
C. Recordkeeping
6. Defendants will create and implement a modified door sheet to better capture the details of out-of-cell time and other provisions of the Settlement Agreement, with an expectation of transitioning much of the recording of this data to one or more digital solutions. Defendants agree to advise Plaintiffs of progress on any transition to digital recordkeeping practices prior to implementation thereof.
D. Offender Management Plans
7. Consistent with Paragraph 53 of the Settlement Agreement, Defendants will create and implement a modified Offender Management Plan document for all existing and future assigned class members. The document will identify individualized goals and objectives for each class member.
E. Training
8. Defendants will, within 30 days of the date of this Addendum Agreement, create and follow a training program to ensure that all individuals responsible for implementing the Settlement Agreement and this Addendum Agreement understand the terms of the Agreements, the importance of following those terms, and the consequences of violating those terms. Defendants will share the plan and associated documents with class counsel.
F. Supervision and Internal Monitoring by Defendants
9. Defendants will assign one experienced corrections official to supervise and monitor compliance with the Settlement Agreement and this Addendum Agreement.
10. The corrections official will be included on all correspondence between class counsel and Defendants' counsel regarding compliance with the Settlement Agreement and Addendum Agreement and will respond to class counsel's reasonable requests for information and records pertaining to compliance.
G. Monitoring by Class Counsel and Reporting to the Court
11. Defendants will file quarterly reports with the Court identifying all provisions of the Settlement Agreement and Addendum Agreement with which they have failed to achieve full compliance in the preceding quarter, all steps that they have taken or intend to take to achieve full compliance, and the timeframe in which they expect to achieve full compliance. Defendants will file the report at least 10 days prior to the status conference provided in Paragraph 13 of this Addendum Agreement.
12. Plaintiffs may respond in writing to each quarterly report within 7 days of the date of service.
13. Contemporaneously with each quarterly report, the parties will attend a status conference with the Court, which may, in the Court's discretion, occur by video or telephonic means. The parties will jointly request that the Court set a status conference to occur on or around October 6, 2022, and approximately once every 90 days thereafter, subject to the Court's approval and scheduling discretion.
14. The monitoring and reporting provisions in this Addendum Agreement do not affect the monitoring and reporting requirements set forth in Paragraphs 57 to 62 of the Settlement Agreement. The parties will continue to hold regular monitoring meetings approximately once every nine months, with the next monitoring meeting to occur in August 2022.