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Five months after a federal judge called conditions in L.A. County jails "inconsistent with basic human values," the ACLU of Southern California exposed fresh evidence of overcrowding and filthy conditions.

This week, Judge Dean D. Pregerson wrote that the central processing hub for the seven-facility L.A. County jail system has "defaulted to the lowest permissible standard of care" and ordered strict new measures to correct the situation.

According to eye-witness accounts and more than two dozen statements collected by the ACLU/SC, hundreds of men arraigned but not convicted of any offense have been held at the Inmate Reception Center for as long as four days in unspeakable conditions.

ACLU/SC jail monitors found that "thirty to forty men are being crammed into holding cells so small that they must take turns lying down on the hard filthy floor." They are held "without regular meals and with no access to showers, beds or mattresses."

Judge Pregerson prohibited the Sheriff's Department from holding more than 20 inmates for more than 24 hours in small holding cells at the Inmate Reception Center.

"Inmates should not be stripped of the bare requisites of dignity and decency," said ACLU/SC legal director Mark Rosenbaum.

The New Jersey Supreme Court took a step toward marriage equality, ruling unanimously that same-sex couples deserve the same rights as other couples.

"Times and attitudes have changed," the court wrote, adding, "discrimination against gays and lesbians is no longer acceptable in this state." Click here to read the court's ruling in a new window (pdf).

The court stopped short of granting gay couples the right to marry.

As in New Jersey, California courts have considered discriminatory laws aimed at preventing same-sex marriage. A divided appeals court ruled against marriage equality in October, and the ACLU California affiliates and civil rights groups have appealed the case to the state Supreme Court. Both states have domestic partner laws that attempt to mimic marriage rights for same-sex couples.

The New Jersey court noted that the state's domestic partnership law has "failed to bridge the inequality gap between committed same-sex couples and married opposite-sex couples." The state legislature has 180 days to decide how to give couples equal rights, for instance by extending marriage or by passing a "civil union" law, as Vermont did in 2000.

While the ACLU applauded the decision, it believes only marriage rights will guarantee full equal treatment for same-sex couples. Last year, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed a bill that would have established marriage equality.

New Jersey Chief Justice Deborah Poritz concurred with the decision but wrote in a dissent that by refusing to give same-sex couples the right to marry, the court sends the message that "what same-sex couples have is not as important or as significant as 'real' marriage."

"We must not underestimate the power of language," she warned.

Photo by Kara Korbel Chinula

width="150" />The New Jersey Supreme Court took a step toward marriage equality, ruling unanimously that same-sex couples deserve the same rights as other couples.

"Times and attitudes have changed," the court wrote, adding, "discrimination against gays and lesbians is no longer acceptable in this state." Click here to read the court's ruling in a new window (pdf).

The court stopped short of granting gay couples the right to marry.

As in New Jersey, California courts have considered discriminatory laws aimed at preventing same-sex marriage. A divided appeals court ruled against marriage equality in October, and the ACLU California affiliates and civil rights groups have appealed the case to the state Supreme Court. Both states have domestic partner laws that attempt to mimic marriage rights for same-sex couples.

The New Jersey court noted that the state's domestic partnership law has "failed to bridge the inequality gap between committed same-sex couples and married opposite-sex couples." The state legislature has 180 days to decide how to give couples equal rights, for instance by extending marriage or by passing a "civil union" law, as Vermont did in 2000.

While the ACLU applauded the decision, it believes only marriage rights will guarantee full equal treatment for same-sex couples. Last year, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed a bill that would have established marriage equality.

New Jersey Chief Justice Deborah Poritz concurred with the decision but wrote in a dissent that by refusing to give same-sex couples the right to marry, the court sends the message that "what same-sex couples have is not as important or as significant as 'real' marriage."

"We must not underestimate the power of language," she warned.

Photo by Kara Korbel Chinula