United States Ninth Circuit

In an action brought under 42 U.S.C. section 1983 by a pretrial detainee alleging that his due process right to be protected from harm at the hands of other inmates was violated when he was severely beaten and injured in his cell by another inmate, the District Court's judgment is affirmed where: 1) the individual sheriff deputies were not entitled to qualified immunity from suit because plaintiff had a clearly established right to be free from violence from other inmates; 2) the evidence supported the jury's findings that the officers knew of the substantial risk of serious harm to plaintiff, and there was sufficient evidence to support the jury's findings that the officers caused plaintiff’s injuries by failing to take reasonable measures to address the risk; and 3) the County of Los Angeles and the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department had notice that their customs or policies posed a substantial risk of serious harm to persons detained in the West Hollywood sobering cell and were deliberately indifferent to that risk.

Appellate Information

• Published 2016/08/15

Judges

• GRABER

Court

• United States Ninth Circuit

Counsel