After a couple reports and much talk, the feds signaled that they're ready to take official action against Orleans Parish Prison today. The U.S. Department of Justice filed court papers indicating they want to intervene in a class action lawsuit that challenges the conditions at OPP. The lawsuit, originally brought by the Southern Poverty Law Center against Sheriff Marlin Gusman and his office, lays out many fronts in which the jail's conditions don't meet Consitutional requirements.

OPP does not protect inmates from physical and sexual violence, provide enough medical, mental health care and suicide prevention services, has serious "deficiencies in environmental health and safety" and has inadequate language access services for Latino prisoners who are not fluent in English, the lawsuit says.

The new motion appears to set up an agreement that would govern the jail's reform. The DOJ already released a scathing report in 2009 about OPP that was the result of a long-term investigation. Another report was issued in April of this year, but no action was taken to force the jail to improve conditions. A statement announcing today's motion says the feds are seeking "a single, comprehensive resolution of the class action and the United States’ investigation of OPP," as well as the class action lawsuit.

Whether the reform will be implemented in a manner similar to the NOPD's consent decree remains to be seen. But the long-awaited federally-mandated change at Tulane and Broad appears to be forthcoming.

“The government’s intervention in this case will facilitate much needed reforms at OPP in the fastest and most efficient manner,” U.S. Attorney Jim Letten said in the statement. 

A federal judge will have to rule on whether the DOJ will be allowed to intervene in the lawsuit.