A federal judge has ordered that several documents be unsealed in a lawsuit between Idaho inmates and private prison company Corrections Corporation of America just days before a hearing is set over whether CCA should be held in contempt of court.
Inmates at the Idaho Correctional Center, represented by the ACLU of Idaho, brought the lawsuit in 2010 because they contend the CCA-run prison was so violent that prisoners called it "Gladiator School."
CCA denied the allegations, but the two sides reached a deal requiring widespread staffing and safety changes.
Late last year the ACLU said it believed the Nashville, Tenn.-based company was violating the settlement. The two sides went into mediation.
Most of the documents filed in the case since have been under seal. The order makes them public.