M.G. is a class-action lawsuit challenging New York State’s practice of prolonging the confinement of people with serious mental illness in prison and/or subjecting people to segregation or the risk of segregation upon release from prison due to the state’s systemic lack of community-based mental health housing and supportive services. It brings claims against officials of the state corrections system and state mental health agency for their failure to comply with the integration mandate of the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, which requires states to serve people with disabilities in the most integrated, community-based setting appropriate.

Originally filed in January 2019 on behalf of people with serious mental illness who remained incarcerated beyond their release dates due to a lack of supportive housing, the case was expanded in August 2020 to include those who, after release, were segregated or faced a risk of reinstitutionalization due to the lack of community-based mental health housing and services. In June 2024, the court granted plaintiffs’ motion to certify the General Class and RTF Subclass, but denied their motion with respect to the Discharge Class. The parties are currently engaged in settlement negotiations.

M.G. directly challenges New York’s prison-to-institution and prison-to-shelter pipelines and seeks an injunction requiring the state to provide appropriate community-based housing and supportive services to people with serious mental illness being released from incarceration.