Accountability.
As extreme temperatures become more frequent, incarcerated people in Texas continue to face dangerous heat in prison buildings that lack universal air conditioning.
In an April 2026 report, the Vera Institute of Justice examined the human consequences of extreme heat and the ongoing federal litigation seeking safer temperatures in Texas Department of Criminal Justice facilities. Advocates argue that keeping people in dangerously hot conditions violates the constitutional prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment.
Formerly incarcerated Texans have described returning from outdoor prison labor to cells that felt hotter than the air outside. Heat exposure can be especially dangerous for older people and those taking medications or living with heart disease, diabetes and other chronic conditions.
Vera cited reporting that at least 41 incarcerated people died during the 2023 Texas heat wave while temperatures inside some state prisons regularly exceeded 100 degrees. The precise relationship between heat and an individual death can be disputed, but medical experts have repeatedly warned that sustained high temperatures increase the risk of heat exhaustion, heat stroke and complications from existing illnesses.
The cost of litigation has also drawn criticism. Vera noted that TDCJ estimated air conditioning at the Wallace Pack Unit would cost about $4 million after the state had already spent more than $7 million fighting litigation concerning conditions at that facility.
Correctional officers also work in the same extreme temperatures. Former corrections-union leader Lance Lowry has argued that air conditioning is a basic safety measure for both staff and incarcerated people, not a luxury.
Texas Prison News will continue tracking the prison heat lawsuit, legislative funding and the installation of climate-control systems across TDCJ units.