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Absent Expert Medical Testimony, Deliberate Indifference Tough to Prove in Medical Cases
by David M. Reutter
The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the grant of summary judgment for the defendants in a civil rights lawsuit alleging they were deliberately indifferent to a prisoner’s serious medical needs. This case highlights the need for expert medical testimony to win in such …
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More from this issue:
- PREA: Tackling the Nightmare of Prison Rape, by David Reutter
- From the Editor, by Paul Wright
- Nebraska Supreme Court Holds Discretionary Function Exception Bars Lawsuit Over Prison’s Botched Response to Uprising
- Arizona Federal Court Rescinds Approval of Jensen Settlement; Sets Class Action Medical and Control Unit Case Against Arizona DOC for Trial, by Matthew Clarke
- $50,000 Settlement for Denial of Medical Care at Tribal Jail in Montana
- Georgia Enacts Massive Probation Reform Bill, by David Reutter
- Protective Order Issued in Florida Solitary Confinement Lawsuit, by David Reutter
- Prison Staff Are Refusing Vaccines. Incarcerated People Are Paying the Price., by Erika Tyagi, Joshua Manson
- The States that Lead the Nation in COVID-19 Cases Are Hiding Their Prison Data, by Sharon Dolovich, Erika Tyagi, Neal Marquez
- Court Grants Class Certification for Illinois Prisoners in Restrictive Housing Lawsuit, by Keith Sanders
- Eighth Circuit Reverses Dismissal of HRDC Postcard-Only Suit Against Arkansas Jail, by David Reutter
- South Carolina Attorney General Issues Opinion That Information in State Prisoners’ Death Certificates Is Public Information, by Matthew Clarke
- HRDC Case Sues JPay Over Fee-Heavy “Release Card” Debit Cards
- Eleventh Circuit Holds No Qualified Immunity on Deliberate Indifference in Heat Exhaustion Case, by David Reutter
- Colorado Jail Blows Through $16 Million in COVID Relief Money, Has Outbreak Anyway, Settles ACLU Conditions Suit, by David Reutter
- Death, Neglect and Despair in U.S. Tribal Jails, by Daniel A. Rosen
- Tennessee Department of Corrections Rebids $123 Million Health Care Contract After Corizon Accuses It and Centurion of Bid Rigging, by Matthew Clarke
- Study Analyzes Deaths of Parole-Approved Texas Prisoners Awaiting Release, by Matthew Clarke
- File a CFPB Complaint for Unfair Money Transfer Fees
- Hunger Strike, Ceiling Collapse, Lawsuit Spotlight Deteriorating Conditions at Women’s Prison in Illinois, by Brian Dolinar, Panagioti Tsolkas
- Sacramento Sheriff Used Prisoner Welfare Fund for Trips, Salaries and Equipment, by Matthew Clarke
- Virginia Department of Corrections Confirms Visitation Not Primary Means of Contraband Introduction, by Kevin Bliss
- Fourth Circuit Rules Prisoner Sex Offender has No Right to In-Person Visitation with His Minor Children, by Douglas Ankney
- Seven Former GEO Employees Plead Guilty in Federal Texas Private Jail Bribery Scheme
- Indiana DOC Settles Class-Action Lawsuit Over Ban on Incoming Mail Except That in White Envelopes Using White, Lined Paper
- Supreme Court Reverses Qualified Immunity Dismissal of Texas Prisoner’s Excessive Force Claim, by Douglas Ankney
- Local Pennsylvania Voters Ban Solitary Confinement and No-Knock Warrants, by David Reutter
- Absent Expert Medical Testimony, Deliberate Indifference Tough to Prove in Medical Cases, by David Reutter
- Erie County Sheriff Settles AG Lawsuit for Violating New York Reporting Directives, by Kevin Bliss
- California Slashes High Call Rates in Prisons and Jails, by Chuck Sharman
- Mailbox Rule Inapplicable to Prisoners Represented by Counsel
- Federal New York City Jail Made Infamous by Jeffrey Epstein Death Closed Due to Persistent Problems and Incompetence
- New Connecticut Law Eliminates Prison Gerrymandering
- $56 Million Settlement in CoreCivic Securities Violation Lawsuit, by David Reutter
- Judge Orders COVID Emergency Release Procedures at Lompoc Federal Prison, by Jayson Hawkins
- Eleventh Circuit Grants Prisoner with Hep C Exception to PLRA Three Strikes Rule
- Washington DC Jail’s Suicide Proof “Safe Cell” Use Not Safe for Prisoners, by Kevin Bliss
- Iowa County Wants to Use COVID-19 Relief Money to Build New Jail, by Keith Sanders
- Immigration Detention Contracts Cancelled in Georgia and Massachusetts, by Daniel A. Rosen
- $1 Million Settlement in Georgia Prisoner’s Preventable Suicide Attempt and Death, by David Reutter
- $500,000 Settlement for California Jail Rape, Deputy Fired and Sentenced
- Pay-to-Play Lives in FEC Decision Not to Enforce Ban on Political Contributions by Boca Prison Contractor The GEO Group, by Dan Christensen
- News in Brief
More from David Reutter:
- The Malleable Mind in the Courtroom: Why Confident Eyewitnesses Often Provide the Least Reliable Evidence, Oct. 15, 2025
- Help Wanted: 31,000 Prison Guard Jobs Open Nationwide, Sept. 1, 2025
- Fifth Circuit Greenlights Federal Takeover of Mississippi Jail, Aug. 1, 2025
- Ninth Circuit Revives Prisoner’s Claim Based on Guard’s Thwarting of Administrative Remedies, Aug. 1, 2025
- Tenth Circuit Ruling Paves Way for $2.7 Million Settlement for Intellectually Disabled Jail Detainee Raped by Sheriff, Aug. 1, 2025
- Ninth Circuit Agrees That Former Guantanamo Detainee Lacks Grounds to Sue for Waterboarding, Aug. 1, 2025
- Qualified Immunity Denied for Iowa Prison Doctor’s MRI Delay for Non-Medical Reasons, Aug. 1, 2025
- Ninth Circuit: Continuing-Violations Doctrine Applies for PLRA Administrative Exhaustion Purposes, Aug. 1, 2025
- First Circuit: Prosecutor’s Breach of Plea Agreement Requires Government’s Specific Performance of Agreement, Not Specific Performance by District Court, Aug. 1, 2025
- Oregon Prisoners Can Now Seek Economic Damages for Future Lost Income More Easily, July 15, 2025
More from these topics:
- Barbaric and Deadly Conditions Continue to Plague Los Angeles County Jails, Feb. 1, 2026. Systemic Medical Neglect, Totality of Conditions, Overcrowding, Failure to Treat (Mental Illness), Deliberate Indifference.
- Alaska Deaths in Custody Tie Record High, Feb. 1, 2026. DOC/BOP misconduct, Systemic Medical Neglect, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Deliberate Indifference, Compassionate Release.
- Washington County Pays $300,000 to Jail Detainee Denied Treatment for Kidney Stone, Feb. 1, 2026. Failure to Treat, Fourteenth Amendment, rights, 42 U.S. Code § 1983, civil action for deprivation of rights, Pretrial Detention and Detainees, Deliberate Indifference.
- $450,000 Paid for Michigan Jail Detainee’s Fentanyl Death, Incarcerated Husband Prevails in Claim for Part of Payout, Feb. 1, 2026. Drug Overdose, Seizure of Prisoner Funds, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Deliberate Indifference.
- Eleventh Circuit Holds Estate Cannot Sue Jailers Who Followed Medical Personnel Advice That Led to Detainee’s Death, Feb. 1, 2026. Drug/Alcohol Withdrawal, Private Contractors, Failure to Treat, Medical Neglect/Malpractice, Deliberate Indifference.
- Eleventh Circuit Holds Alabama County May Be Liable for Policy of Providing Inadequate Jail Medical Care, Feb. 1, 2026. Systemic Medical Neglect, Private Contractors, Failure to Treat, Monell Liability, Deliberate Indifference.
- Alabama and Wexford Health Pay Undisclosed Settlement for Delays Costing Prisoner Partial Foot Amputation, Feb. 1, 2026. Wexford Health Services, Systemic Medical Neglect, Failure to Treat, Infections, Deliberate Indifference.
- Ninth Circuit Reinstates Wheelchair-Bound Washington State Prisoner’s Suit Over Failure to Accommodate Disabilities During Transport, Feb. 1, 2026. Transportation, Excessive Force, Americans with Disabilities Act, Rehabilitation Act, Deliberate Indifference.
- Ninth Circuit Hands Partial Victory to NaphCare, Remanding Much of $27 Million Jury Verdict in Washington Jail Death Case, Jan. 1, 2026. Naphcare, Systemic Medical Neglect, Private Contractors, Monell Liability, Deliberate Indifference.
- $450,000 Paid by Missouri County for Jail Detainee’s Death After 11 Days Without Medical Attention, Jan. 1, 2026. Systemic Medical Neglect, Failure to Treat, Monell Liability, Inadequate Health Care Facilities, Deliberate Indifference.

