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An advocacy group for people with disabilities filed a lawsuit against New Jersey officials on Tuesday, alleging harrowing conditions and systematic violations of patient rights in four state-run psychiatric hospitals.

The lawsuit, filed in federal court by Disability Rights New Jersey, alleges that the “reality on the ground” at four hospitals — Ancora Psychiatric Hospital; Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital; Trenton Psychiatric Hospital; and Ann Klein Forensic Center — is “more akin to psychiatric incarceration” than to a setting where patients can get proper care.

…”Imagine living in an environment where even the most basic choices are taken away from you — when to wake up, when to go outside, when to have a drink of water,” said Bren Pramanik, managing attorney of the group’s Institutional Rights team. “And, in place of psychiatric treatment, you face both boredom and violence on a daily basis.”