Court orders partial closure of prison in Minas Gerais.
The Court of Justice of Minas Gerais (TJ-MG) has ordered the partial closure of the Três Corações Regional Penitentiary, whose maximum capacity for prisoners is more than doubled, according to the Public Prosecutor's Office of Minas Gerais (MP-MG). In practice, the decision will limit the entry of new inmates into the penitentiary; designed to hold 542 inmates, the unit houses 1.281 men and women in custody.
By Alex Rodrigues - Reporter for Agência Brasil
The Court of Justice of Minas Gerais (TJ-MG) has ordered the partial closure of the Três Corações Regional Penitentiary, whose maximum capacity for prisoners is more than doubled, according to the Public Prosecutor's Office of Minas Gerais (MP-MG). In practice, the decision will limit the admission of new inmates to the penitentiary.
Designed to hold 542 inmates, the unit houses 1.281 men and women in custody. In the preliminary injunction request filed in a Public Civil Action, the state Public Prosecutor's Office pointed to the existence of several irregularities resulting from prison overcrowding. Among them are insufficient security conditions; an insufficient number of prison officers; deficiencies in water supply, sewage treatment, and healthcare for inmates.
According to the Public Prosecutor's Office, overcrowding not only violates the fundamental rights of those serving sentences in the regional penitentiary, but also jeopardizes municipal and state public safety.
Public prosecutors specializing in criminal enforcement and human rights in Três Corações maintain that, in some cells, up to six prisoners serving sentences in the closed regime are crammed into a space intended for two people. In cells designed for six people, it is possible to find between 15 and 17 inmates. Furthermore, the precarious hygiene conditions lead to infestations of insects, rats, cockroaches, and other animals.
Given the seriousness of the reported situation, the state court concluded that it was necessary to gradually close part of the prison. The State Prison Administration Secretariat may only send prisoners to the unit who have committed crimes in Três Corações, whether they are convicted or awaiting trial. Failure to comply with the decision may result in a daily fine, unless it is an urgent case authorized by the judge of the Criminal Enforcement Court, with the approval of the Public Prosecutor's Office of Minas Gerais.
The secretariat informed Agência Brasil that it has already been notified of the decision and is complying with the court's orders, and that, if necessary, prisoners will be transferred to other prison units in the region.