Santa Fe County Board of Commissioners Sued Over Prison Mold Problems

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The Santa Fe County Board of Commissioners and Mark Gallegos, the warden of the Santa Fe County Adult Correctional Center, are the defendants in a proposed class action filed by 11 named plaintiffs who claim the parties’ alleged reckless and negligent handling of mold issues throughout the facility’s showers and lavatories “created an epidemic of severe ailments among the inmate population.”

The Santa Fe County Adult Correctional Center, which is also known as the Santa Fe Adult Detention Facility (ADF), is comprised of four separate housing units that each contain 12 showers for inmate use. According to the 46-page lawsuit, the cinder block and cement showers were in desperate need of renovations, as “thick layers of paint, mold, and grime accumulated on the shower walls” as recent as 2013. In November 2013, the defendants allegedly entered into a contract to renovate the prison’s showers and lavatories in order to meet certain accreditation requirements.

The defendants’ conduct from here out is described in the complaint as hapless and reckless. The defendants allegedly failed to follow accepted safety procedures, with the lawsuit taking exceptional issue to the parties’ alleged disregard for “extensive safety protocols set forth by the manufacturer of the highly toxic, isocyanate-containing chemical sealant used in the renovation.”

“As a consequence of its recklessness and negligence, Santa Fe County exposed each and every inmate at ADF to interminable and extraordinarily hazardous conditions, all day, every day, for months at a time,” the lawsuit alleges.