California Court of Appeal

In a negligence claim by plaintiff-prisoner for abuse suffered in state prison, court order sustaining defendant's demurrer to plaintiff's claim for negligence on the ground that plaintiff failed to allege a cognizable duty is reversed where: 1) the trial court erred in sustaining the demurrer to plaintiff's negligence claim based on a lack of duty; 2) the trial court properly dismissed plaintiff's claim for damages based on an alleged violation of the cruel or unusual punishment clause; and 3) the trial court did not err in dismissing plaintiff's claims for declaratory and injunctive relief.

Appellate Information

• Decided 11/14/2008
• Published 11/14/2008

Judges

• RICHMAN, J.

Court

• California Court of Appeal

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• The Walston Legal Group, Gregory S. Walston and Julie Zhalkovsky, San Francisco, for Plaintiff and Appellant., Melissa Rothstein and Serena Lin, as Amicus Curiae on behalf of Plaintiff and Appellant.


• For Appellees:
  
• Edmund G. Brown, Jr., Attorney General, David S. Chaney, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Frances T. Grunder, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Jonathan L. Wolff, Supervising Deputy Attorney General, Jose A. Zelidon-Zepeda and Emily Brinkman, Deputy Attorneys General, for Defendants and Respondents.