View source for Gates v. Collier

{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2023}}
{{Infobox COA case
 |Litigants=Gates v. Collier
 |Court=[[United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit]]
 |CourtSeal=Seal of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.svg
 |ArgueDate=
 |ArgueYear=
 |DecideDate=September 20,
 |DecideYear=1974
 |FullName=Nazareth Gates et al v. John Collier, Superintendent, Mississippi State Penitentiary, et al
 |Citations=501 [[F.2d]] [https://openjurist.org/501/f2d/1291 1291] (1974)
 |Prior=349 [[F. Supp.]] [https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/FSupp/349/881/1501708/ 881] (N.D. Miss. 1972); 371 [[F. Supp.]] [https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/FSupp/371/1368/2133721/ 1368] (1973)
 |Subsequent=
 |Holding=
 |Judges=[[Elbert Tuttle]], [[Griffin Bell]], [[Irving Loeb Goldberg]]
 |Majority=Tuttle
 |JoinMajority=
 |Concurrence=
 |JoinConcurrence=
 |Dissent=
 |JoinDissent=
 |LawsApplied=[[Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Eighth Amendment]]
}}
[[File:Parchman prison convict labor 1911.jpeg|thumb|Prison labor under the [[Trusty system (prison)|trusty system]]]]
'''''Gates v. Collier''''', 501 [[F.2d]] 1291 (5th Cir. 1974),<ref>{{cite court |litigants=Gates v. Collier |vol=501 |reporter=F.2d |opinion=1291 |pinpoint= |court=5th Cir. |date=1974 |url=https://openjurist.org/501/f2d/1291 |accessdate=2017-10-12 |quote=}}</ref> was a [[List of landmark court decisions in the United States|landmark decision]] of the [[United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit|Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals]] that brought an end to the [[Trusty system (prison)|trusty system]] as well as flagrant inmate abuse at [[Mississippi State Penitentiary]], also known as Parchman Farm, in [[Sunflower County, Mississippi]].<ref name="Lessons from Parchman Farm">{{cite web|last1=Robben|first1=Janie|title=Lessons from Parchman Farm|url=https://www.osbar.org/publications/bulletin/07jan/profiles.html|website=Oregon State Bar|ref=10}}</ref><ref name="Worse Than Slavery">{{cite book|last1=Oshinsky|first1=David|title=Worse Than Slavery|date=1997|publisher=Hemel Hempstead|isbn=978-0684830957|edition=First|pages=320|ref=9}}</ref><ref name="Episode 9 of the Constitutional podcast: 'Fair punishment'">{{cite news|last1=Cunningham|first1=Lillian|title=Episode 9 of the Constitutional podcast: 'Fair punishment'|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/on-leadership/wp/2017/10/23/episode-9-of-the-constitutional-podcast-fair-punishment/|newspaper=Washington Post|ref=8}}</ref> It was the first case in a body of law developed in the [[United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit|Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals]] holding that a variety of forms of [[corporal punishment]] against prisoners constituted [[cruel and unusual punishment]] and a violation of [[Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Eighth Amendment]] rights.<ref name="hnet">{{cite web|url=http://www.h-net.org/~law/reviews/oshinskyd.htm|title=Parchman Farm and the Ordeal of Jim Crow Justice|publisher=|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060901155426/http://www.h-net.org/~law/reviews/oshinskyd.htm|archive-date=2006-09-01|accessdate=2006-08-28}}</ref> This case was also the first broad-scale intervention by a court in the supervision of prison practices.<ref name="aclu">{{cite web|url=http://www.dsl.psu.edu/civilrights/chapter1.html|title=ACLU Parchman Prison|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20080307222545/http://www.dsl.psu.edu/civilrights/chapter1.html|archivedate=2008-03-07|accessdate=2006-08-29}}</ref>

In ''Gates v. Collier'', the Court of Appeals found certain forms of corporal punishment violate the Eighth Amendment, including "[[handcuff]]ing inmates to the fence and to [[Prison cell|cell]]s for long periods of time, ... and forcing inmates to stand, sit or lie on crates, stumps, or otherwise maintain awkward positions for prolonged periods."<ref name=":0">{{cite web
 |date=Fall 2002 
 |url=http://www.scoc.ny.gov/pdfdocs/clr02-3.pdf 
 |title=Correction Law Report 
 |publisher=New York State Commission of Correction 
 |accessdate=2007-11-29 
}}{{dead link|date=January 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

== Parchman Farm ==
The [[Mississippi State Penitentiary]], commonly known as Parchman Farm, was founded in 1904 and consisted of 20,000 acres of delta.<ref name="Episode 9 of the Constitutional podcast: 'Fair punishment'" /> The prison was styled after plantations, emerging in the South during the [[Jim Crow laws|Jim Crow era]]. It's estimated that throughout its history, about 90% of Parchman's prisoners were black men.<ref name="Episode 9 of the Constitutional podcast: 'Fair punishment'" />

After the Civil War, Mississippi was still dependent upon black labor to sustain its farms and plantations. As a result, the state passed a series of laws that made vagrancy a crime; African Americans had to constantly carry papers around showing proof of employment, and if they were found without documentation they would be arrested. Pig laws also played a role in the convictions of many Parchman Farm inmates. Pig laws made any kind of minor larceny a serious crime, for stealing something like a soda would typically result in five years of jail.<ref name="Episode 9 of the Constitutional podcast: 'Fair punishment'" /> Convict leasing was another discriminatory system used in which African Americans would be leased to do work rather than sent to jail, essentially taking the place of slavery.<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" />

Parchman Farm had black camps that were overseen by a white sergeant. Below the white sergeant were black trusties, who had been convicted of murder and allowed to carry a gun. The state rationalized this system economically, for hiring inmates to carry out duties rather than civilian guards meant money was being saved.<ref name="Episode 9 of the Constitutional podcast: 'Fair punishment'" />

"The Penitentiary Board at the time was composed of 5 individuals appointed by the Governor with consent of the Senate for 4-year terms, appointed the superintendent, who was vested with exclusive management and control of the prison system in all aspects, including the care and treatment of inmates and the hiring, control and discharge of 150 civilian employees".<ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/district-courts/FSupp/349/881/1501708/|title=Gates v. Collier, 349 F. Supp. 881 (N.D. Miss. 1972)|website=Justia Law|language=en|access-date=2020-02-06}}</ref>

Oshinsky, the author of ''Worse than Slavery'', once stated in an interview with ''The Washington Post'' that "Parchman Farm was basically the leading cash cow for the state of Mississippi." They were adding hundreds of thousands of dollars and then millions of dollars to the state treasury, and thus were a huge economic asset".<ref name="Episode 9 of the Constitutional podcast: 'Fair punishment'" />

== Roy Haber ==
In 1970, [[Roy Haber]], a [[Civil rights movement|civil rights]] lawyer, was recruited along with other lawyers to "bring some law and order to the South".<ref name="Lessons from Parchman Farm" />

Haber first came to Parchman in 1970 after quitting his New York City divorce practice to speak with Matthew Winter, a prisoner who had been convicted of murder. Haber's initial visit to Parchman was made in order to determine whether or not Winter had been adequately represented in court. After his first meeting with Haber, Winter was threatened and beaten by [[Trusty system (prison)|trusties]].<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" /><ref name="Episode 9 of the Constitutional podcast: 'Fair punishment'" />

Haber took statements from Parchman inmates about conditions at the prison, which was not easy at first; many prisoners were afraid of facing retribution from prison officials.<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" />

Some of his most "damning" evidence included a document that ran over fifty single-spaced pages with a list of murders, rapes, beatings, and tortures at Parchman between 1969 and 1971.<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" />

== Racial discrimination and inmate abuse ==
At Parchman Farm, punishments up until the 1970s were representative of [[slavery]]. "The prisoners were housed in large barracks that were rundown and filthy, with 100–120 in one room".<ref name="Episode 9 of the Constitutional podcast: 'Fair punishment'" /> Each camp had open ditches that held raw sewage and medical waste.<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" /> When Judge Keady of the [[District court|District Court]] Case visited Parchman on multiple occasions, he witnessed "filthy bathrooms, rotting mattresses, polluted water supplies, and kitchens overrun with insects, rodents, and the stench of decay."<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" /> Parchman was known to be dangerous and deadly. Aside from its inhumane conditions, shootings and beatings were carried out regularly, murders failed to be documented and the maximum-security unit was a torture chamber.<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" />

Allegations of abuse between 1969 and 1971 include:

* Bogard, William: compelled to stand in the daytime and sit at night for three entire days without interruption on a [[soft drink|coke crate]].<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" />
* Collins, Matthew: murdered by trusty J.C. Dunnican on order of Ollis Hitt.<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" />
* Goodwin, Frank: "jumped on" and had an ear ripped off by inmate Danny Williamson.<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" />
* Hayes, Jessie: shot by trusty John Horn for refusal to engage in homosexual acts.<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" />
* Humes, George: handcuffed to bars, on tiptoes for two days without food, water, or bathroom facilities.<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" />
* Marino, Hilliard: hair cut and pulled out while forced to kneel on the concrete floor, assaulted with others in MSU with brass knuckles, causing blindness and constant pain.<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" />
* Nathan, Walter: handcuffed and hung from tree.<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" />
* Tackett, Bob: another inmate named Cantrell kicked out one of his eyes which was lost; that he was beaten by a trusty.<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" />
* Waldie, Donald: required to maintain a mid-suspended position which one assumes during course of doing push-ups, and at that time was guarded by J.D. Gilmer, who shot above or below him if he moved.<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" />
* Wells, William: fatally shot by Sgt. West.<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" />
* Williams, Jessie: fatally shot by Walter Griffin, a trusty, on orders of Obar, the driver of the vehicle.<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" />

== District court case ==
On February 8, 1971, Nazareth Gates, Willie Holmes, Matthew Winter, and Hal Zachary filed a class action against the Superintendent of the Penitentiary, the members of the Mississippi Penitentiary Board and the Governor of the State.<ref name=":1" /> "The plaintiffs charged that ‘deplorable conditions and practices’ at Parchman deprived them of rights guaranteed by the [[First Amendment to the United States Constitution|First]], [[Eighth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Eighth]], [[Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Thirteenth]], and [[Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Fourteenth]] amendments to the [[Constitution of the United States|United States Constitution]]".<ref name="Worse Than Slavery" />

Thomas D. Cook was the penitentiary superintendent accused of committing the actions, and was replaced in February 1972 by John Collier, who was substituted and appointed in his stead as a defendant.

"28 U.S.C. §§ 1331 and 1343, the plaintiffs allege that the defendants, by their methods of prison administration, have deprived the inmates of rights, privileges and immunities secured to them by the First, Eighth, Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments and by 42 U.S.C. §§ 1981, 1983, 1985 and 1994. The complaint stated that African American inmates had been segregated and discriminated against based on their race, which is a violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. The complaint aimed for injunctive relief to remedy the alleged misconduct of the defendants and a declaratory judgment that the continuation of certain practices and conditions at the penitentiary is unconstitutional".<ref name=":1" />

According to a section of the Preliminary Statement, "On August 23, 1971, the United States was allowed to intervene as plaintiff pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 2000h-2.[2] The complaint in intervention alleges that the defendants have, contrary to the Fourteenth Amendment, maintained a system of prison facilities segregated by race; and, additionally, the defendants have failed to provide the inmates with adequate housing, medical care, and protection from assault from other prisoners; that the conditions of the sewerage disposal and water systems create an immediate health hazard, and that prison officials have permitted the custodial staff, including inadequately trained armed trusties, to inflict cruel and unusual punishment upon inmates in violation of the Eighth Amendment. The United States seeks injunctive relief to remedy the alleged misconduct of defendants".<ref name=":1" />

In October 1972, [[William Colbert Keady|Judge William Keady]] found for the plaintiffs, calling Parchman Farm an "affront to modern standards of decency" and its living quarters "unfit for human habitation." He ordered an end to all unconstitutional conditions and practices.<ref name=":1" /><ref name="Worse Than Slavery" />

== Fifth Circuit decision ==
The state of Mississippi appealed this decision to the [[United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit|Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals]], though the Fifth Circuit ended up agreeing with the lower court's earlier decision. Racial segregation of inmates was abolished as well as the [[Trusty system (prison)|trusty system]].<ref name=":0" />

Subsequently, other states utilizing the trusty system, such as [[Arkansas]], [[Alabama]], [[Louisiana]] and [[Texas]] were also forced to abolish it under the ''Gates v. Collier'' rulings.

==See also==
{{Portal|Mississippi|Law|United States|Politics}}
*[[Louisiana State Penitentiary]]
*[[Cummins Unit]] - Arkansas and Texas
*''[[Pervear v. Massachusetts]]''
*''[[Holt v. Sarver]]''
*''[[Ruiz v. Estelle]]'' - Texas
*''[[Hope v. Pelzer]]''

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
*Oshinsky, David M. "Worse Than Slavery: Parchman Farm and the Ordeal of Jim Crow Justice." The Free Press: NY (1996) {{ISBN|0-684-83095-7}}.

==External links==
*{{caselaw source
 | case = ''Gates v. Collier'', 501 F.2d 1291 (5th Cir. 1974)
 | cornell =
 | courtlistener =https://www.courtlistener.com/opinion/321166/nazareth-gates-and-united-states-of-america-plaintiff-intervenor-appellee/
 | findlaw = 
 | justia =https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/501/1291/254864/
 | oyez =
 | vlex =
 | other_source1 = OpenJurist
 | other_url1 =https://openjurist.org/501/f2d/1291
 | other_source2 = Google Scholar
 | other_url2 =https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=4977910314253763057
 }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080307222545/http://www.dsl.psu.edu/civilrights/chapter1.html ACLU Parchman Farm]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20061007231533/http://www.usdoj.gov/crt/foia/tx5.txt United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth District]
*[https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/on-leadership/wp/2017/10/23/episode-9-of-the-constitutional-podcast-fair-punishment/ Episode 9 of the Constitutional podcast: 'Fair punishment.']
{{US8thAmendment}}

[[Category:1974 in United States case law]]
[[Category:United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit cases]]
[[Category:Cruel and Unusual Punishment Clause case law]]
[[Category:Penal system in Mississippi]]
[[Category:Corporal punishment case law]]
[[Category:Sunflower County, Mississippi]]
[[Category:Corporal punishments in the United States]]