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Inhumane Conditions at Marcy Correctional RMHU
September 9, 2025 Albany, NY – Disability Rights New York (DRNY) and Prisoners’ Legal Services of
New York (PLS) filed a complaint with a temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction in
the Northern District against New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision,
Commissioner Daniel F. Martuscello III, in his official capacity, Marcy Correctional Facility,
Superintendent Bennie Thorpe, in his official capacity, New York State Office of Mental Health,
Commissioner Ann Marie T. Sullivan, in her official capacity, RMHU Unit Chief Vincent Lorusso, in
his official capacity, Governor Kathy Hochul, in her official capacity, and the State of New York.
After visiting in August 2025, DRNY and PLS found that the Marcy Correctional Facility’s
Residential Mental Health Unit (RMHU) functions similarly to the segregated housing units it was
meant to improve.
In 2007, the then-Department of Correctional Services (DOCS) agreed to create the RMHU as part of a
settlement in response to a 2002 lawsuit filed by DRNY, as Disability Advocates, Inc., PLS, Davis
Polk Wardwell and Legal Aid Society’s Prisoners’ Rights Project against the New York State Office
of Mental Health (OMH). The lawsuit alleged that DOCS and OMH failed to provide adequate mental
health services in prison, resulting in the placement of individuals with mental illness in
solitary confinement.
Following the settlement of that lawsuit, New York passed a law making the RMHU permanent.
However, despite these reforms, the practice of isolating incarcerated individuals with serious
mental illnesses in segregated units continues. People are confined to small cells for 24 hours a
day for months on end absent an occasional call-out. These cells are subjected to extreme
temperatures due to the lack of proper airflow through the unit and are littered with debris,
including feces.
“The conditions that these men are living in are horrific,” said Timothy Clune, Esq., Executive
Director of DRNY. “After decades of operating these units, the defendants decided to terminate all
services for these men. They are now confined to their cells under inhumane conditions.”
“The DAI lawsuit exposed the appalling conditions endured by individuals with serious mental
illness in New York’s prison system and, after five years of hard-fought litigation, it was finally
settled,” said Karen Murtagh, Executive Director of PLS. “That settlement came with the expectation
that DOCCS and OMH would fulfill their obligations and provide adequate care and treatment to this
vulnerable population. Unfortunately, they have failed to do so—and we are once again compelled
to return to court to fight for the basic rights and dignity of our clients.”
Read Full Complaint Here
Read Full Memo of Law TRO PI Here
Read 2002 Complaint Here
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