United States Sixth Circuit

In a claim by the estate of plaintiff-inmate, serving 35-day sentence for failure to pay child support, who died after a severe asthma attack in a county jail, judgment denying qualified immunity with respect to defendant officers is reversed and nurses' appeal for lack of jurisdiction is dismissed where: 1) defendant officers were not deliberately indifferent to plaintiff's medical needs because they reasonably responded to his requests for medical attention in a timely manner and defendant officers were entitled to rely upon the medical treatment of nurses once they obtained medical care for plaintiff; and 2) purposes of qualified immunity do not support the extension of the doctrine to nurses employed by a private medical provider.

Appellate Information

• Decided 08/28/2008
• Published 08/28/2008

Judges

Court

• United States Sixth Circuit

Counsel