Families of Victims Who Died From Heat in Prison Fight to Prevent More Deaths

The Central California Women’s Facility in Chowchilla, California’s largest women’s prison, faced temperatures exceeding 90 degrees by mid-May, with no air conditioning or facility-wide cooling systems. Inmates report extreme discomfort, such as 45-year-old Tien Mo, who described waiting hours in 96-degree heat without access to water during group sessions in the yard. A 2023 study found that every 10-degree increase above a prison’s mean summer temperature correlates with nearly a 5% rise in heat-attributable deaths, while a 2019 Prison Policy Initiative report revealed 13 U.S. states lack universal prison air conditioning, leaving housing units and outdoor areas uncooled. On July 4, 2024, temperatures in Chowchilla reached 109 degrees, leading to the death of 47-year-old Adrienne Boulware after she collapsed in the yard while awaiting medication. Boulware was one year from a parole hearing; her family attributes her death to the prison’s lack of heat protections. Now, her family is pushing for Adrienne’s Act, a proposed California law requiring the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) to install cooling systems in living quarters, work areas, and recreational spaces, along with shade structures and temperature monitoring. The bill also mandates emergency response protocols for extreme heat and wildfire smoke, which plague California between May and October. It would require summer-appropriate clothing, increased access to showers and personal fans, and regular medical assessments for high-risk inmates, such as those on medications or with preexisting conditions. Prison medical staff would be tasked with documenting heat-related illnesses and providing immediate treatment, including access to cool drinking water and cooled indoor areas. A CDCR spokesperson did not complete a response but acknowledged an autopsy was conducted after Boulware’s death. Advocates argue that implementing these measures could have prevented Boulware’s death and similar tragedies. The legislation aims to address systemic vulnerabilities in prisons during extreme weather, where inmates—often with limited mobility or health conditions—are disproportionately affected by heat exposure.