A federal judge's rebuke of Texas housing prisoners in lockups without air conditioning stopped short of ordering a fix before summer in what has become of the country's biggest lawsuits over keeping prisoners safe during dangerous extreme heat.

Texan authorities have been criticized over extreme heat in their prison system, where temperatures can routinely rise above 100 degrees Fahrenheit in the summer. Out of around 100 Texas state prison units, only about one third are fully air conditioned, according to the Associated Press.