Gates v. Cook.

• Position: Prisoners alleges violation of their Eighth Amendment rights - Brief Article

U.S. Appeals Court

PESTS

Gates v. Cook, 376 F.3d 323 (5th Cir. 2004). A death row prisoner brought a suit on behalf of himself and other prisoners confined to death row, alleging that certain conditions of confinement on death row violated the Eighth Amendment's prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. The district court found that a number of conditions violated the Eighth Amendment and issued an injunction designed to alleviate the conditions. The defendants appealed. The appeals court affirmed in part and vacated in part. The court found an Eighth Amendment violation due to mosquito infestation coupled with insufficient screen gauge, which exacerbated the heat problems by deterring death row inmates from opening their windows to increase circulation. The court noted that pest infestation problems were linked to chronic sleep deprivation, which exacerbated the symptoms of mental illness. The court...